Help Me Not
by maya295
Summary: Set at the end of Help Me, following Cuddy's legendary line: "I love you. I wish I didn't. But I can't help it." - What if House had say 'no' to this? NOT definitely, of course... (written in the form of a script)
1. Chapter 1

_Hi everyone, _

_This one is a bit special…_

_First of all, I chose to tackle a touchy subject… Yeah, I'm actually derailing the sacrosanct ending of Help Me!_

_I know this episode – and especially the last scene – is probably the most untouchable Huddy moment of all. So why would I want to change it?_

_Well, to be honest, as much satisfying as it felt back then (and trust me, I was more than thrilled when I watched that episode, wrapped in my little red blanket, alone in my hotel room at 2 o' clock in the morning… ahhh, memories! :P) the thing is, in hindsight, I can't help but think that this sudden, completely out of blue change of heart from Cuddy was carrying a sense of Huddy doom in it._

_Yes, love should conquer all, but the timing, albeit very romantic, was fucked up: House was broken, weak, confused, about to relapse… Cuddy was impulsive (huh?) demanding, confused as well…_

_So I thought… What if House had been aware of that, and strong enough to say 'no'?_

_Ow, don't throw stones at me, yet!  
__You know me, right?: this IS a Huddy story, so eventually, they're gonna be together. I just felt like changing the pace of their getting together a bit._

_Also, and second of all, you might be a bit startled by the style of this one…_

_I love to write, but I also love to test different writing styles and for this one, I've decided to try something I've never done before for a fanfiction: I wrote a script!__  
What I wanted to do here was to create a 'visual' as much as possible, and I thought the scriptwriting style was something that would allow me to do that the most. I hope it won't take you off guard too much, and I also really do hope you will "see" the scenes as I imagine them in my head. _

_I followed the specific "script layout" as much as I could (some of you may already be familiar with it) so there'll be dialogues mostly, punctuated with short, directing cues._

_Anyway, on to the story!_

_I hope you'll like it! :)_

* * *

**** HELP ME NOT **  
****- chapter 1 -**

INT. HOUSE'S APARTMENT - BATHROOM - NIGHT.

House is sitting on the floor, his back against the bathtub. Cuddy, dressed in pink scrubs, is standing in front of him.

_Cuddy: Lucas...  
House: Oh, great. You're feeling uncomfortable again. Probably means you just got back from some quickie wedding in Vegas or you're already pregnant.  
C: I ended it.  
H: What?  
C: I'm stuck, House. I keep wanting to move forward. I keep wanting to move on, and I can't. I mean, my new house, with my new fiancé, and all I can think about is you. I just need to know if you and I can work.  
H: You think I can fix myself?  
C: I don't know.  
H: 'Cause I'm the most screwed-up person in the world.  
C: I know. [Long pause] I love you. I wish I didn't. But I can't help it._

House continues to stare at her, stunned.

HOUSE:  
**I was about to take Vicodin—**

CUDDY:  
**But I'm here now.**

HOUSE:  
**I know. What I'm saying is… Cuddy…**

He sighs, defeated.

CUDDY:  
(a little bit worriedly)  
**What?**

She holds out her hand to help him stand up. He reluctantly takes it and gets up. Facing her, he stares into her eyes, looking ashamed.

HOUSE:  
(self-deprecating)  
**You've made the wrong choice.**

CUDDY:  
**Wh…What?!**

Now panic has replaced worry and she looks at him with wide eyes.

CUDDY (cont'd):  
(incredulous)  
**I'm here, House. I broke up with Lucas.  
**[A beat]  
**I came to ****_you_****.**

House says stubbornly silent and hurt registers on Cuddy's face.

CUDDY:  
(insisting)  
**I love ****_you_****.**

He bows his head and stares at his feet.  
Off his undecipherable look.

CUDDY (cont'd):  
**What is it?**

She takes a tentative step towards him, touches his chest with the palm of her hand. He recoils and takes a step back.

HOUSE:  
(with obvious sadness)  
**Is that really enough?**

Cuddy looks shocked. Her pride visibly wounded, she looks everywhere but at him.  
We follow her gaze as it lands on the hole in the wall, where his mirror used to be. She gulps, uneasy.

CUDDY:  
**I'd better go.**

She starts to leave. House grabs her arm before she does.

HOUSE:  
**Wait!**

CUDDY:  
(facing him again)  
**Don't. Please, ****_don't._**

Her tone has a slight warning edge to it, but her voice is wobbling. She's about to cry. House cannot pretend he doesn't see it. He heaves a deep sigh.

HOUSE:  
**Why did you do that?**

CUDDY:  
(tiredly)  
**Do what?**

HOUSE:  
**Break up with Lucas? Why did you end your relationship with him to be with a man like ****_me_****?**

She puffs. A long silence, as she stares at him, dismayed.

CUDDY:  
(resentfully)  
**Fuck you, House.**

She wriggles to set herself free from his grip, and leaves.  
We follow her as she almost runs out of the bathroom, tears falling down her cheeks. She's already halfway down his hallway when, off her distraught look, House's voice calls after her.

HOUSE:  
**You think I don't want that, too?**

Cuddy stops dead in her tracks. She's visibly struggling to decide whether or not she should keep going. House's silhouette appears at the end of the hallway.

HOUSE:  
(beseeching)  
**Cuddy—**

She closes her eyes. Maybe shivers a bit. Finally, she turns around.  
They don't speak for a long while.  
Finally...

CUDDY:  
(defeated)  
**But that's not enough, is it?**

House walks toward her, limping heavily. He stops, just inches away from her and locks eyes with her, looking sorry and lost. She stares back, expecting something that doesn't come.

CUDDY:  
(bitter)  
**Fine. Don't explain. I got it. I'm a fool for b-**

HOUSE:  
(almost angrily)  
**Do you have any idea how much I want to make love to you right now?**

She gasps, visibly stunned.  
They both stand in his hallway. Their bodies are like two shadows, the only source of light coming from House's bathroom behind them.  
They stare at each other. Slowly, House raises his hands to cup her face. Very gently, he leans down and presses the tip of his nose against her nose, breathing deeply. Their lips almost touch.

HOUSE:  
(whispering voice)  
**Do you have any idea how much I want to kiss you?**

Cuddy takes a long, wobbling breath and closes her eyes. Relief spreads on her face. She wraps her arms around his neck and brushes his lips with her lips.  
It's tentative, almost hesitant. For a second it feels like House is going to let go and kiss her back…  
Instead, he grabs her wrists and pulls back.

HOUSE:  
(eyes closed, visibly struggling)  
**No.**

CUDDY:  
**No?**

HOUSE:  
**You can't do this... ****_We _****can't.**

CUDDY:  
**But… ****_why?_**

She looks puzzled, and mostly sad.

HOUSE:  
**Look at me. My patient died and I was about to relapse.  
I'm a mess—**

CUDDY:  
**I'm a mess, too.**

HOUSE:  
**No, I mean—I literally ****_am _****a mess.**

CUDDY:  
**Is this about your shoulder? Does it hurt? I'm sorry, I-**

HOUSE:  
**It's not just my shoulder. It's everything… This…  
You, here… ****_Now_****. This is a gigantic mistake.**

CUDDY:  
**Don't say that…**

HOUSE:  
**I'm a drug addict, Cuddy.**

CUDDY:  
(looking down, uneasy)  
**I know.**

HOUSE:  
(reproachfully)  
**No, you don't. You dumped your fiancé, and so what?  
Love conquers all, that's it?**

She puffs.

CUDDY:  
(sarcastic)  
**Apparently, it doesn't.**

House studies her face with gravity, but gives nothing away.  
A beat.

CUDDY (cont'd):  
**You're right. I made a mistake.  
You don't love me so I guess there's no-**

HOUSE:  
**You are everything I want. ****_Everything._**

CUDDY:  
**Sorry if I have a hard time believing this is true, right now.  
**(pause)  
**I came here and I told you I loved you and you-**

HOUSE:  
(cut the crap)  
**You are screwed-up.**

CUDDY:  
**Excuse me?**

HOUSE:  
**Do you realize what you did? Do you even realize what it means?**

CUDDY:  
**It means I want to be with you.**

HOUSE:  
(raising his voice angrily)  
**No. You want to ****_try _****me!**

Cuddy's mouth falls agape. Guilt registers on her face, as she understands where this is going.

HOUSE:  
**Three hours ago, you yelled at me that you didn't love me,  
and now you wanna know if you and I can ****_work_****?**

CUDDY:  
(looking down, avoiding his accusing gaze)  
**I-**

HOUSE:  
**And what if it doesn't? What if you and I doesn't work?**

She sighs.

CUDDY:  
**You're afraid.**

HOUSE:  
**Of course, I'm afraid! Cuddy, I-  
**(exhales deeply)  
**I feel numb. My shoulder is… It hurts. I'm not even sure I could…  
**(looks away in shame)  
**… ****you know. I'm too weak and… Hannah's dead.**

CUDDY:  
**I'm sorry.**

HOUSE:  
**No. You don't understand.**

She gulps, uneasy. But mostly, she looks like she doesn't understand, indeed.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**This savior thing, it won't work. I've been ****_hoping _****for this moment to happen for ****_so _****long...  
Do you know how it feels, to hope for something to happen, so hard that it hurts?**

Tentatively, he caresses the side of her face with his fingertips and she exhales a sigh of relief.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**I don't want to have you only now… I want tomorrow, too, and the day after that.  
I want next week, and next month, and…**

He stops and gulps, uneasy.

CUDDY:  
(reassured by House's intention, softly)  
**We need to take this one step at a time.**

HOUSE:  
**No, we don't. It's all or nothing, Cuddy, and you know it. There is no middle ground.  
I don't want us to be some doomed, fucked-up trial that you've decided to test on a whim  
because you can't decide what you want.**

CUDDY:  
(angry)  
**Don't make this about me, House. I chose you!**

HOUSE:  
**Yes, you did. And I'm an ass! I lie. I cheat to get what I want.  
I have no boundaries. ****So are you sure you want me?  
Do you ****_really _****want to be with me?**

CUDDY:  
**Why do you have to make this so complicated?**

HOUSE:  
(self-conscious)  
**Because you're the only chance I have at being happy, and I don't want to blow  
it because we're both confused and needy, and all of this, right now, sounds  
like a good idea, like something comforting that we—**

He puffs, and Cuddy shakes her head in dismay. Yes, this is really what it is to choose House...

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**You saved me once. I hallucinated you, as my savior.  
And I lost my mind because of it, remember?**

CUDDY:  
(not giving up)  
**This is not what it is—**

HOUSE:  
**Really? ****_How_****? How is that different?**

CUDDY:  
**Because I'm really here. You're not hallucinating, House.**

HOUSE:  
**But this is still the same, somehow. **

CUDDY:  
(confused)  
**I thought… you wanted this.**

HOUSE:  
**I do. I really do.**

CUDDY:  
**Then why should it be a problem?**

HOUSE:  
(struggling)  
**Because… Cuddy… I've watched you date that man child for months- **

CUDDY:  
**So this is what it's all about? You're punishing me for-**

HOUSE:  
**No. I'm giving us a ****_real _****chance. If you and I got together now, then what would happen?  
We'd make love, and we'd bask in an endorphin-driven blissfulness for a few days,  
maybe a few weeks until, somewhere down the road, reality would hit us in the face-**

CUDDY:  
**What reality?**

HOUSE:  
**You broke your engagement, and you made the most impulsive move you probably  
ever made in your entire life, but when you found me here, I was about to ****_relapse_****! **

There's a long pause, as Cuddy bites her lower lip, stunned to silence.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**And so next time I screw up, and trust me Cuddy, ****_I will_****, you'll start wondering  
if you made the right choice... and because you're the one making the sacrifice,  
you'll start blaming me for it.**

CUDDY:  
**I'm not making any sacrifice! **

HOUSE:  
**Right now, you only ****_think _****you're not, but... what if you'd come two minutes later?  
What if I had already taken the Vicodin? Would you have still wanted me?**

CUDDY:  
**This is so unfair!**

HOUSE:  
(resignedly)  
**No. It's called being realistic. That's my sanity at stake, here. All those months, all those ****_years_****,  
I've wanted to have you... so ****_badly_****. You have no idea how much! And if there's a God, he must  
be one fucking ironic bastard because now that I ****_can _****have you, it feels like you and I together,  
****_now_****, we're just a ticking bomb threatening to go off-**

She inhales deeply, and looks at him more peacefully. Maybe he's not rejecting her, after all...  
Off her look.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**And I can't let that happen. Don't you see it? Right now, it'd be so easy to give in.  
Of course, I want ****_you_****. I wish this was enough, I wish-**

Another pause. He stares at her with obvious sadness.

CUDDY:  
**What do you want?**

HOUSE:  
(staring straight into her eyes)  
**I want to be the man you choose. **

CUDDY:  
**You are-**

HOUSE:  
**Today, and tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow.**

Cuddy holds his stare for a long while before closing her eyes to ponder his words.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**I just need some time...**

CUDDY:  
**How much time?**

HOUSE:  
**I don't know. **

Cuddy sighs heavily and studies his face in silence. Then she raises her hand and cups his cheek in her palm. He closes his eyes and leans into her touch briefly.

HOUSE:  
**If you don't want to do this, I'll unders—**

CUDDY:  
**Shut up.**

HOUSE:  
**I'm serious. Cuddy, I'd rather lose you now than…**

CUDDY:  
(adamant)  
**You won't lose me.**

HOUSE:  
(self-conscious)  
**I need to do this.**

CUDDY:  
**I know.**

HOUSE:  
**For me…**

CUDDY:  
**I know.**

HOUSE:  
**And for us.**

She sucks in a sharp breath. Tears well up in her eyes and she blinks a few times to hold them back.

CUDDY:  
**Will you call me?**

He bites his bottom lip and locks eyes with her. She can see in his gaze that the answer is 'no.'

CUDDY (cont'd):  
(resignedly)  
**How long will you be gone?**

HOUSE:  
**I don't know... A few days.**

A long beat.

CUDDY:  
**Alright.**

House stares at her in awe. He feels grateful and relieved for her understanding, not quite believing this is true, though.

HOUSE:  
**Cuddy, I'm sorry, I…**

CUDDY:  
(forcing herself to remain practical)  
**What do I tell your team?**

HOUSE:  
**Don't tell them anything…  
**(She frowns disapprovingly, clearly indicating this can't be a viable option, which he knows.)  
**Tell them… tell them you gave me the day off… a few days off… to recover from…**

CUDDY:  
**The loss of your patient?**

HOUSE:  
(avoiding her gaze)  
**My injuries.**

She nods silently, then...

CUDDY:  
**What about Wilson?**

House's eyes widen and he puffs, looking slightly overwhelmed. Cuddy notices his discomfort instantly. She touches the side of his arm, reassuringly.

CUDDY:  
**I'll take care of him.**

House looks down, self-consciously.

HOUSE:  
(almost inaudibly)  
**Thank you.**

A long pause.  
Everything has been said. For now.  
They've reached that moment, awkward moment, when they both know they have to part. Cuddy gulps audibly, visibly trying to gather up the courage to leave.  
She opens her mouth to say something but House grabs her hand before she can speak.

HOUSE:  
**Don't… please. Don't make me make you stay… **

They walk to his doorstep. By his door, they lock eyes and stare at each other intensely for some long, meaningful seconds.

Cuddy closes her eyes and shakes her head left and right a few times, visibly struggling.

She finally turns on her heel, opens the door… and leaves.

The clicking sound of the door being shut makes House jump. He stares at the door and grabs the knob.

In his hallway, we see Cuddy standing on the doorstep, facing the door. She looks lost, but resigned. She grabs the doorknob, too.

On the other side, House leans his forehead against the door, his eyes closed. We see his grip on the doorknob tighten.

In the hallway, Cuddy inhales a sharp intake of breath and lets go of the doorknob. She exits the building, hastily, without looking back.

... ... ...  
EXT. HOUSE'S BUILDING, FROM THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STREET - NIGHT.

Through the windshield of a car, we see Cuddy running down the steps of House's building. We follow her as she disappears into the night.

Back to the steps of House's building. No one is around. The lights in his apartment are still on.

Inside the car, through the reflection in the rear-view mirror, we see a pair of blue eyes, intensely staring in the direction of House's apartment…

The car's driver door opens. Lucas steps outside and crosses the street towards House's building.

... ... ...  
INT. HOUSE'S APARTMENT - LIVING ROOM - NIGHT.

Several knocks can be heard. Loud and forceful.

From the doorstep, we see House's silhouette appear in the hallway, coming out of the bathroom. His limp is heavy, but his strides are long, and almost impatient.  
The fast rhythm of his pace indicates that he's expecting Cuddy to be back; even maybe hoping that it's her…

House flings the door open, a bit breathless... only to come face to face with Lucas, who's standing on his doorstep.

With one abrupt push on House's shoulder, Lucas makes him step backwards before House has a chance to say anything, and enters the apartment.

House turns around to face him.

HOUSE:  
(sarcastic)  
**Oh great! Here's the angry fiancé, now. Listen, if you're here to smash me, let me just say I—**

Lucas doesn't pay attention. He walks past House and heads decidedly towards the bathroom. House follows after him, incredulous.

HOUSE:  
**She's not here…**

LUCAS:  
**I know. I just saw her leave a few minutes ago.**

HOUSE:  
**Of course. That's not creepy at all.**

Lucas is scanning the bathroom and assessing the mess around him.

LUCAS:  
(An epiphany)  
**You guys didn't have sex.**

He leans over the bathtub, spots the bottles of Vicodin on the floor, and then looks at the hole inside the wall above the sink.

LUCAS (cont'd):  
(disdainfully)  
**You're pathetic, House. And so predictable. But Lisa, she's stubborn.  
She didn't want to admit what a loser you are. I tried to warn her—**

House's face darkens with anger.

HOUSE:  
(with a sudden burst of pride)  
**You're wrong. I know it sucks to get dumped, but there's nothing you can do about it.  
She loves me. Sorry.**

LUCAS:  
(laughing derisively)  
**Haha. You're funny, pal. **

HOUSE:  
**I'm not your pal, ****_pal_****.  
****Maybe you got there first, but turns out what mattered most was to get there, ****_eventually_****.**

LUCAS:  
**You're nowhere, House. If Lisa wanted to be with you, then why did she leave, uh?**

HOUSE:  
**Because…**

House looks defeated for a split second: He can't reasonably tell Lucas what just happened…  
Lucas stares challengingly at him with a smug look on his face.

LUCAS:  
(provoking)  
**Yeah. Exactly. Maybe it sucks to get dumped, but surely not as much as it  
sucks to find out that the woman you love doesn't want you after all. **

House clenches his jaw and stomachs Lucas' barb stoically.

LUCAS (cont'd):  
**She made a mistake. I wanted to stop her, and I couldn't. But maybe it's for the best.  
That way, she got to see by herself. And now, she's going to come back to me…**

House looks like he's positively fuming with contained rage, even though he doesn't do anything to stop Lucas' victorious little spiel.

LUCAS (cont'd):  
(unaware of House's reaction)  
**And you know what I'm gonna do, House? I'm gonna forgive her. Yeah, because at least  
now I know she won't make the same mistake twice. Actually, you did me a favor! **

House closes his eyes, and inhales deeply through his nose. He's visibly trying to control himself. Badly.

HOUSE:  
(warningly)  
**I think you'd better leave now.**

LUCAS:  
**You know what, you're right! I thought I'd have to knock you out - which frankly didn't even rejoice me  
that much, what with you being a miserable cripple - but turns out I won't have to, after all.  
**(He looks at the messy place one last time)  
**You really made it too easy for me. See? I can't even hate you.**

HOUSE:  
(biting the bullet)  
**Listen, I get it: I'm a loser. And Cuddy's going to run back into your arms because you're  
the coolest guy. Can we cut the alpha male crap, now? I need to bandage my shoulder. **

LUCAS:  
**Yeah, dude, looks like one messy wound you've got here, hmm?**

Lucas leans down and fetches a bottle of Vicodin on the floor.

LUCAS (cont'd):  
(obvious double-entendre)  
**Hurts, right?  
**(He puts the bottle of Vicodin in House's hand)  
**Here! You're gonna need this…**

Lucas leaves, and House stays rooted to his spot, staring at the palm of his hand, looking distraught.

House continues to stare at his hand, as we hear the sound of the apartment's door being shut. His hand starts trembling and the bottle of Vicodin falls on the bathroom floor.  
The sound makes him jump and he quickly fishes his cellphone out of his jeans' pocket. With a trembling hand he dials a number.

As the call gets through…

HOUSE:  
**I need to see you.**

... ... ...  
INT. NOLAN'S APARTMENT - BEDROOM - NIGHT

NOLAN:  
(Still half-lying in bed. Sleepy voice)  
**Who's that?**

HOUSE:  
(Into phone)  
**Gregory House.**

NOLAN:  
(Sitting bolt upright. Clearly awakened)  
**House? What's wrong?**

HOUSE:  
(Into phone. Shaky voice)  
**I need to see you.**

[INTERCUT AS NECESSARY]

NOLAN:  
**Where are you?**

HOUSE:  
**At my place.**

We see House lean down to collect the bottles of Vicodin on the floor.

NOLAN:  
(concerned)  
**Do you have any drugs with you?**

A beat.  
Off Nolan's look, the sound of a Vicodin bottle being popped open.

NOLAN:  
**House?**

HOUSE:  
(Flushing the toilet)  
**Not anymore.**

Nolan checks his watch and glances at the sleeping body lying next to him in bed.

NOLAN:  
(reluctantly)  
**Do you want us to meet, now?**

HOUSE:  
**No. I'm okay. Tomorrow?**

NOLAN:  
**You sure you okay?**

HOUSE:  
**Yeah... But, let's make it tomorrow, first thing in the morning. You know, just in case…**

NOLAN:  
**Ok. I'll see you tomorrow, then.**

Nolan hangs up and goes back to bed.

(TBC...)

* * *

_**A/N**_

_This story is going to be four-chapter long._

_I'll try to post a chapter every week._

_Thank you for reading!_

_Have a nice day ~ maya_

_PS: sorry for the purists (trust me, I'm as bummed as you are): I originally typed the story with specific tabulations for the dialogues, which fanfiction doesn't allow me to reproduce. Blimey! :P_


	2. Chapter 2

_Hi everyone,_

_Thank you to all of you who have read this story, put it on alert or faved it since I've posted it.  
__Also, thank you to all the kind reviewers, who left me a few words and expressed their thoughts about this story.  
__I'm really happy you guys seem to enjoy it so far._

_OldSFfan, MystryGAB, JLCH, Amandak82, IHeartHouseCuddy, freeasabird14, housebound, Pdubou, Jaybe61, lenasti16, CacauHousemaniaca, bere, Drdiagnostic, HuddyGirl, AreKay, vicpei1, Anny Rodrigues, KiwiClare, Bladesmum, Sandy, and all the guests who didn't leave a name: THANK YOU!  
Your words mean a lot to me... :)_

_Now, on to the chapter!_

_I hope you'll still enjoy it, despite it not being quite exactly what you were expecting, I'm afraid…_

* * *

**** HELP ME NOT **  
****- Chapter 2 -**

INT – PPTH – HOUSE'S OUTER OFFICE - MORNING (THE NEXT DAY)

Foreman, Chase and Thirteen are all gathered around the conference table, offhandedly reading files or scientific reviews. They look more like they're just killing time rather than busy with a medical case.  
Through the glass wall, we spot Taub in the hallway, arriving hurriedly. He enters, and hastily takes his coat off.

He looks pretty disheveled.

TAUB:  
(his back to the team as he hangs his coat)  
**Sorry. Got caught in traffic, it was—**

CHASE:  
**Save it, mate. House's not here.**

Taub turns around and, indeed, sees that his boss isn't in the conference room. He looks relieved for a second, and then suspiciously glances at House's office. It's empty.

CHASE:  
(with a self-satisfied grin)  
**How's Ruby?**

TAUB:  
(taken off guard at first, but quickly pulling himself together)  
**I—I don't know what you're talking about.  
There was a huge traf—**

CHASE:  
**Come on, man! I've arrived an hour ago and your car was already parked in the garage—**

THIRTEEN:  
(deadpan, not even looking up)  
**Plus, you have red hair on your shirt…**

Taub, acting like he's been caught red-handed doing it in an on-call room, instantly jerks his head to the side to check his shirt. Of course, there's no hair on it.

THIRTEEN:  
(sarcastic)  
**At least, now, we ****_really_**** know why you're actually arriving an hour late.**

TAUB:  
(squirming in discomfort)  
**I—err—I was just helping…  
Ruby wanted to show me a patient's file—**

CHASE:  
(smiling)  
**Patient's file, uh? Nice euphemism!**

Taub rolls his eyes but doesn't answer.

THRITEEN:  
**Not that it's any of my business,  
but aren't you supposed to try to save your marriage?**

TAUB:  
**My marriage is fine.  
**(coughs)  
**It's just… Rachel has been a little…  
Well, we're just trying to—**

THIRTEEN  
(putting her hands up)  
**Hey, not judging here!**

Foreman, who hasn't said a single word so far, gets up and goes to the coffee machine. He pours himself a mug and walks back to the table, sitting down.  
He glances at his watch. We see the dial displaying 10am.  
He looks a bit worried, but tries not to give it away too much.  
Taub finally takes a seat and joins the others at the table.

TAUB:  
**What do we have?**

CHASE:  
**Nothing so far. House's not here so we're just killing time. Enjoy!**

Taub looks a bit put out. Visibly, that's not _his_ definition of the best way to kill time…

CHASE:  
**Hey, sorry! Next time we'll send a page to tell you there's no need to rush-**

THIRTEEN:  
(impatient)  
**Why is House not here, anyway?**

CHASE:  
**It's still early. ****_Why_**** would he be here sounds like the more logical question.**

FOREMAN:  
(concerned)  
**He lost a patient last night.**

TAUB:  
**And? House has lost plenty of patients in the past.  
Never affected his ability to move on.**

FOREMAN:  
**That one was different. He looked pretty shaken.**

CHASE:  
**Yeah, well, I'm sure he went to a bar and drowned his sorrow in whiskey all night.  
****He's probably sleeping it off as we speak.**

THIRTEEN:  
(getting up)  
**In that case, I don't see why we should wait all day doing nothing.  
Seems obvious to me that he's not gonna show up.  
**(walking backwards towards the exit door, still facing the team)  
**Don't know about you guys, but I'm out of here!**

As she's playfully waving goodbye to the team, she bumps into…

CUDDY:  
(bossy)  
**No one is going anywhere. You have a case.**

Thirteen reluctantly takes her seat back at the table, while Cuddy throws several copies of the patient's file onto the table.

FOREMAN:  
**House is not here.**

CUDDY:  
(to Foreman, with a slightly sarcastic tone)  
**Doesn't mean this Department has to stop diagnosing sick people, does it?  
**(to the team, all business)  
**Forty-three-year-old male with abdominal pain, dark urine, fatigue-**

CHASE:  
(fumbling through the file's pages)  
**Hepatitis?**

CUDDY:  
**Hepatitis has been ruled out.  
Mr. Saroyan works for an NGO mostly engaged in Africa.  
****His vaccines are all up-to-date. **

FOREMAN:  
(to Cuddy, obviously single-tracked)  
**Did you talk to him?**

From his tone, Cuddy instantly understands that Foreman's question refers to House.  
She turns to him and squares her shoulder, trying to sound as detached as she can.

CUDDY:  
**House was injured on site last night…  
**(she shoots one swift glance at his empty office, and her face clouds over briefly)  
**He needs time to recover.**

FOREMAN:  
(insisting)  
**How much time?**

CUDDY:  
(clearly annoyed)  
**As much time as necessary.  
**(She pointedly turns her back to him and looks at the other members of the team.)  
**I trust you ****_all_**** to focus your energy on this medical case.**

She turns on her heel and leaves.  
Foreman follows her with his eyes as we see her stride away in the hallway.  
Suddenly, he leaps up and leaves the conference room.  
Everyone looks at him, a bit puzzled for a second, but quickly returns to the patient's file.

THIRTEEN:  
(fumbling through the pages)  
**Apparently, he's been travelling in Ethiopia recently.  
Must have taken some antimalarial-**

CHASE:  
**G6PD Deficiency? **

... ... ...  
INT – PPTH – 4TH FLOOR HALLWAY - DAY

Foreman quickly catches up with Cuddy as she stands, waiting for the elevator to arrive.

FOREMAN:  
**Dr. Cuddy?**

She turns around and puffs in exasperation.

FOREMAN (cont'd)  
**You were with House last night?**

CUDDY:  
(blushing)  
**Excuse me?**

FOREMAN:  
**When he amputated his patient—**

CUDDY:  
(exhales in relief)  
**Ah… uh, yes. I was there when the ambulance took Hannah to the hospital…**

FOREMAN:  
**I'm worried about him. He was in pretty bad shape, yesterday.  
Losing her hit him stronger than usual.**

CUDDY:  
(pulling herself together)  
**Eric, it was a fat embolism.  
There's nothing anyone, not even House, could have done…**

FOREMAN:  
**I know, but that's not how he saw it—**

CUDDY:  
(doing her best to sound convincing… to herself?)  
**He's going to get over it. Everything's gonna be fine.  
**  
FOREMAN:  
(almost accusingly)  
**Did you even see him since last night?**

The elevator arrives and the door opens with a ding. Cuddy promptly steps in the car and presses the button several times impatiently.

CUDDY:  
(dismissive)  
**Listen, there's nothing to worry about.  
House is taking a few days off.  
****He just needs some time to get past this and he'll be back,  
a perfect pain in the ass like he always is.  
**

The doors start to shut. Cuddy holds them back with her hand.

CUDDY (cont'd):  
(a bit bitchy)  
**You're in charge until then, and you have a patient to diagnose  
so I suggest you start focusing on what's really important.**

The elevator doors finally close and Foreman puffs, upset.

... ... ...  
INT – PPTH – HOUSE'S OUTER OFFICE – DAY

Foreman enters and takes his seat at the end of the table.

FOREMAN:  
**What do you have so far?**

THIRTEEN:  
**Patient often travels to Ethiopia for the NGO he works for.  
Just came back from there a week ago—**

CHASE:  
**Surely took antimalarial. We're thinking G6PD Deficiency.**

FOREMAN:  
(looking into the patient's file)  
**Bilirubin's high. It fits.**

TAUB:  
**It also says that he's been on quinidine sulfate for the last month.  
ECG reveals an abnormally elevated heart-rate.  
****All the symptoms fit: fatigue, dark urine, jaundice, fast heartbeat-**

FOREMAN:  
**You're suggesting-**

TAUB:  
**Drug Induced Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia.**

FOREMAN:  
**He'd have an inflamed spleen.**

THIRTEEN:  
**Not if it's G6PD deficiency.**

FOREMAN:  
**Alright. Do an abdominal CT scan.  
Do a blood test to check G6PD enzyme's level.  
****If it's negative, run a Comb's test for D.I.A.H.A.**

Everyone gets up and leaves the room.

... ... ...  
INT – PPTH – CUDDY'S OFFICE - DAY

Cuddy is filling administrative forms. The phone rings.  
She picks up.

NURSE REGINA:  
(into phone)  
**Dr. Cuddy? I have Lucas on hold for you.**

Cuddy covers the receiver with her hand and closes her eyes, taking a deep breath.

CUDDY:  
**Tell him I'm in a meeting.**

NURSE REGINA:  
(into phone)  
**But that's the third time he—**

CUDDY:  
**Regina. Not now. Tell him I'm busy.**

NURSE REGINA:  
(into phone)  
**Fine… He's going to be pissed off, you know.**

Cuddy hangs up and sighs heavily.  
She rubs her forehead wearily and leans back in her chair.  
On her desk, we can see a picture of her with Lucas, as he stands by her side, proudly holding her waist.  
She stares at it for a while, then, out of the blue, straightens up, seizes the picture and puts it away inside her drawer.  
She looks relieved for a brief moment. Then, she grabs hold of her pen again.  
We see her stare at her left hand, specifically at her ring finger… without a ring.

... ... ...  
INT – PPTH – HOUSE'S OUTER OFFICE – DAY

Foreman is sitting at the conference table. Chase, Thirteen and Taub enter the room all at the same time, carrying files.  
As they take their seat…

THIRTEEN:  
**Exam revealed an enlarged spleen.**

CHASE:  
**It's not G6PD deficiency. Blood test is normal.**

TAUB:  
**Comb's came back negative. It's not D.I.A.H.A, either.**

THIRTEEN:  
**Sickle Cell Disease?  
The elevated heart-rate could indicate a respiratory infection.**

CHASE:  
**There's no hand-foot syndrome.**

THIRTEEN:  
**Yes, but the guy doesn't look taller than 5'6.  
It's consistent with a growth problem.**

TAUB:  
(a bit vexed)  
**Or his size has nothing to do with it and he's just small!**

Chase shoots him a look, smiling teasingly.

TAUB (cont'd):  
(to Chase)  
**I'm just saying, you can be small ****_and_**** perfectly healthy!**

FOREMAN:  
(refocusing everyone)  
**What about skin ulcers?**

THIRTEEN:  
(as realization suddenly hits her)  
**No… but… he had some bruising on the abdomen—**

Foreman grabs the abdominal CT scan and holds it in the air.

CHASE:  
**There's nothing there. **

FOREMAN:  
**I wouldn't be so sure.**

He hands the scan to Chase, who takes it and holds it up, too, looking closely.  
He frowns dubiously.

CHASE:  
**There's a tiny spot but it looks more like a dark area on the scan page.**

He puts the scan down.  
Taub takes it, too, and studies the image closely.

CHASE (cont'd):  
(stubbornly)  
**The scan is inconclusive.  
I know what you're thinking but it's not Cholangiosarcoma.**

FOREMAN:  
(looking Chase right in the eyes, challengingly)  
**Enlarged spleen, high bilirubin, dark urine, fatigue?  
****Sorry, but all signs point to liver cancer.**

Chase looks down, giving up.

FOREMAN (cont'd):  
**And you know what House would do?**

TAUB:  
**He'd send us to do a blood test to confirm.**

FOREMAN:  
(looking pleased with himself)  
**No. He'd go to Wilson with the scan…**

He quickly gathers the results into a file and gets up, leaving the room with a determined pace.

... ... ...  
INT – PPTH – WILSON'S OFFICE - DAY

Wilson is sitting at his desk, filling prescriptions.  
Someone knocks on the door.  
Wilson looks up.  
Foreman, who's cracked the door open, passes his head through the small space.

FOREMAN:  
**Dr. Wilson, can I bother you for a minute?**

WILSON:  
**Sure, come in!**

FOREMAN:  
**I need your opinion on this.**

He hands him the scan.  
Wilson takes it, gives it a quick glance…

WILSON:  
**What does House say? Liver, I assume—**

FOREMAN:  
**House's not here.**

Wilson puts the scan down, looking surprised.

WILSON:  
**Who sent you here, then?**

FOREMAN:  
**No one.**

Wilson frowns, dubious, takes the scan back.

WILSON:  
**Ok.  
**(he squints to look more closely at the scan.)  
**I don't see anything… Wait! There's a-  
**

FOREMAN:  
(unceremoniously snatches the x-ray image from Wilson's hand)  
**Never mind. It's just a darker spot on the image. There's nothing there.**

Wilson puffs, understanding the scan was just a pretext. He stares at Foreman, expecting the worse.

WILSON:  
**Alright. What's this ****_really_**** about?**

FOREMAN:  
**Did you know House lost his patient last night?**

Wilson's eyes widen with surprise.

WILSON:  
**No, I didn't. How?**

FOREMAN:  
**Fat embolism.**

Wilson nods empathically.

WILSON:  
**Yeah, it happens.**

FOREMAN:  
**House didn't take it very well.**

WILSON:  
(not impressed)  
**Losing a patient is never a pleasant thing.  
But knowing House, he'll have forgotten about it as soon as he'll arrive—**

FOREMAN:  
**No. You don't understand. House is not coming in today.**

WILSON:  
(suddenly looking more concerned)  
**What do you mean, he's not coming in?**

FOREMAN:  
**Cuddy put me in charge of the new case.  
She said she gave House the day off.**

WILSON:  
**I don't see why this should be a problem, then.**

FOREMAN:  
**You didn't see House yesterday. ****_I did_****. **

WILSON:  
(trying to sound casual)  
**That's why Cuddy gave him the day off.**

FOREMAN:  
**Cuddy didn't really seem concerned. This is not like her.  
I asked her if she talked to him and she eluded the question.**

WILSON:  
**Well, maybe because that's none of your business!**

Foreman gathers the test results into the patient's files and turns on his heel to leave.

FOREMAN:  
(Smugly, as he stands on the doorstep)  
**I'm telling you something's off.**

He exits, leaving Wilson bemused.

... ... ...  
INT – PPTH – CUDDY'S OFFICE - DAY

Absorbed in her paperwork, Cuddy doesn't notice someone entering her office.  
It's Lucas.  
He walks confidently towards her.  
Cuddy jumps in her seat when she finally sees him.

CUDDY:  
(Clearly upset)  
**Lucas! What… What the hell are you doing here?**

She stands, tidies herself up.  
Lucas, completely heedless of the inappropriateness of the situation, walks around the desk and quickly leans down to give her a kiss on the cheek.  
Cuddy recoils and takes a step back.  
Lucas, visibly not taking the hint, walks to the other side of the desk again and sits down on the chair.  
Cuddy stares at him, flabbergasted.

LUCAS:  
(pouting like a child)  
**I tried to call you, but you wouldn't answer.**

Cuddy strides determinedly towards Lucas, and grabs his upper arm to force him to get up.

CUDDY:  
(leading him towards the exit)  
**I'm busy—**

LUCAS:  
(stops to face her)  
**I was worried about you. I just wanted to see if everything was okay.**

She sighs and lets go of his arm.

CUDDY:  
(empathically)  
**Lucas… We broke up. You can't come here anymore or…  
worry about me. It's… we're over.**

LUCAS:  
(complete inadequate bluntness)  
**I went to House's last night—**

CUDDY:  
(shocked)  
**WHAT?**

LUCAS:  
**I saw the pills… Babe, you were confused last night. I get that.  
You made a rushed decision and I forgive you.  
****What I'm saying is, we don't have to ruin what you and I have together  
just because you made a mist—**

CUDDY:  
(mouth agape, completely stunned)  
**Oh my God! Lucas… Please, no!  
**(she covers her mouth with her hands and shakes her head in obvious bafflement)  
**You don't understand: you and I don't have anything anymore.  
I'm sorry, I really am, but I told you last night ****already:  
It's ****_over_****, and I'm not going change my mind.  
Please don't make this harder than it already is…**

Just then, Wilson storms into Cuddy's office, worry written all over his face.

WILSON:  
**What's the matter with House?**

At the same time he spots Lucas in the room.  
Cuddy looks very nervous. She grabs Lucas' arm – more gently this time – but still firmly leads him to the exit.

CUDDY:  
(To Lucas)  
**I'm sorry, I can't talk to you right now.  
As you can see, I'm busy—**

LUCAS:  
(With a sugary voice, intentionally messing up with Cuddy)  
**Alright, I understand. But we'll talk later, right?  
I know how this thing with House relapsing must have been a sh—**

CUDDY:  
(horrified)  
**Lucas! **

WILSON:  
(flabbergasted)  
**WHAT THE HELL?**

Cuddy promptly pushes Lucas outside and slams the door shut in his face.  
We see Lucas waving bye to her behind the blinds with a self-satisfied smile.  
Cuddy turns around and squares her shoulders, already steeling herself for what's about to come…

CUDDY:  
(before Wilson can say anything)  
**It's not what you think.**

She quickly walks to her desk and sits down, looking down at her paperwork, trying to appear dismissive.  
Wilson stands in the middle of the room, with his jaw slack, totally stunned.

WILSON:  
(sarcastic)  
**House relapsed? I'm sorry but what exactly am I supposed to think of ****_this_****?**

CUDDY:  
(still avoiding his gaze, with a definite tone)  
**House didn't relapse.**

WILSON:  
**Oh really? That's not what Lucas just said—**

CUDDY:  
**Lucas is wrong…**

WILSON:  
**Why would he say such a thing if it wasn't true?!**

CUDDY:  
**Because—**

She coughs, visibly uncomfortable with the situation.

CUDDY (cont'd):  
(gets up again and comes closer to Wilson)  
**Wilson… it's complicated. I can't explain you everything right now,  
****but you have to trust me: House did ****_not_**** relapse.**

WILSON:  
(clearly confused)  
**How can you be sure?  
**(he frowns, hit by a sudden realization)  
**Did you see him?**

CUDDY:  
**Wilson, we were in Trenton together last night.  
Of course I saw him!**

WILSON:  
**I mean after that… You know he lost his patient, right?  
Foreman said it was pretty hard on him—**

Cuddy looks upset.  
She rubs her forehead and sighs heavily.

CUDDY:  
(accusingly)  
**It was hard on everybody! House is fine… Wilson, just—**

She tries to motion him to leave by putting her hand flat on his shoulder blade.

WILSON:  
(not budging)  
**Foreman also said you gave him the day off-**

CUDDY:  
(reassuringly)  
**Yes. He had a nasty cut on the collarbone—**

WILSON:  
**WHAT?**

CUDDY:  
**Wilson, calm down. It's okay. I stitched him up myself. He just needs to rest, is all.  
****Foreman is perfectly capable of handling the department for a few days-**

WILSON:  
**A ****_few_**** days?**

CUDDY:  
**Well, err, I mean, I gave him today off,  
but maybe he'll need another day or two. We'll see then.**

WILSON:  
(struggling to look on the bright side)  
**So you talked to him?**

CUDDY:  
**Yes.**

WILSON:  
**How did he sound?**

Cuddy bites her lip, looking uneasy.  
She made a promise to House not to say anything to Wilson so…

CUDDY:  
(trying to sound both honest and reassuring while lying to Wilson)  
**Tired. Pride-wounded… You know how House is:  
He hates losing a patient.  
****Rubs his God's complex the wrong way!  
Eventually, he'll get over it. Don't worry.**

WILSON:  
**I should go check on him!**

CUDDY:  
(a bit too quickly)  
**NO!**

WILSON:  
(suspicious)  
**Why not?**

She gulps. In fact, right at this moment, she's dying to be with House, too; something she obviously can't confess to Wilson…

CUDDY:  
**Because… First of all: I think House needs to be alone to wallow in misery for a while.  
Let's cut him some slack.  
**(exaggeratedly casual)  
**He'll be fine!**

WILSON:  
(unconvinced)  
**You sure?**

CUDDY:  
(equally unconvinced, but trying hard to look like she's not…)  
**Yes. And second of all: You have patients that need you right now,  
more than House does. So go!**

Wilson squints at her, unsure.  
Cuddy shoots him her best fake smile.  
Wilson sighs, not quite duped by her little act, but has no other choice but to do as he's told…

WILSON:  
**Alright. First one who hears from him lets the other know, right?**

Cuddy nods.

CUDDY:  
**Of course!**

Wilson nods, too, and turns on his heel, finally leaving Cuddy's office.  
As soon as he's gone, Cuddy exhales loudly in relief.  
She goes back to sit at her desk and stares blankly ahead for a while, looking really worried and sad.

... ... ...  
INT – PPTH – HALLWAY NEAR MR. SAROYAN'S PATIENT ROOM - DAY

Chase and Thirteen exit the patient's room side by side.  
Thirteen slides the door shuts while Chase waits for her in the hallway.

CHASE:  
**When exactly do you plan on telling us that you're leaving?**

Thirteen puffs, clearly taken off guard by his question.

CHASE (cont'd):  
(deadpan)  
**I read your letter.**

THIRTEEN:  
(looking pissed)  
**I thought I'd written ****_House's name_**** on the envelope for a reason—**

CHASE:  
(unmoved by her anger)  
**Oh, come on, you think we wouldn't have found out at some point?**

She starts walking away.  
Chase quickly catches up with her and sets his pace on her walking tempo.

THIRTEEN:  
**What if, I'd rather… you guys didn't know?**

CHASE:  
(genuinely incredulous)  
**But why? You're asking for a leave of absence, completely out of the blue…  
****Do you really think we're not going to wonder why?**

She stops walking abruptly, and turns to face Chase.  
He stops as well, and looks at her expectantly.

THIRTEEN:  
(sighing)  
**I… I just need some time off to take care of some personal stuff…**

CHASE:  
(expressing sincere care)  
**Personal stuff, like, ****_Huntington-related_****, personal stuff?  
Are you getting worse?**

Thirteen rolls her eyes and looks at him with a fond smile.

THIRTEEN:  
(touching the side his arm affectionately)  
**Chase, I'm fine. I'm a big girl. And I don't need help, ok?**

CHASE:  
(not quite buying it)  
**You sure? You would tell us if you did, right?**

She looks at him with a face that clearly indicates she wouldn't.

CHASE (cont'd):  
(smiling, thinking it's a game)  
**Alright, fine, maybe not to us, but… to me?  
You'd tell ****_me_****, right?**

Thirteen shakes her head left and right and smiles back, before walking away again from him with a fast pace.  
This time, Chase doesn't follow after her but watches her leave, instead.  
After a few seconds…

CHASE (cont'd):  
(calling out after her, amused)  
**That smile… that meant 'yes,' right?**

... ... ...  
INT – HOUSE'S APARTMENT – LIVING ROOM - DAY

We hear the sound of the key being turned into the lock.  
The door opens and Wilson steps in, cautiously.

WILSON:  
(looking around the empty room)  
**House?**

He steps inside and walks towards the kitchen.

WILSON:  
**House? Are you in there?**

No one's there.  
Wilson turns around and heads towards the bedroom.  
In the hallway…

WILSON:  
**House, it's me! If you've got company, I'm warning you:  
I'm about to enter your bedroo—**

He stops dead in his tracks, as he notices something's off in the bathroom.  
He enters and looks around him: The room's clean and tidy, except for the mirror above the washbasin that's missing.  
And the hole in the wall.

Wilson turns pale.  
Through the connecting door, he enters the adjoining bedroom.  
The words die on his lips as he calls his friend's name again and realizes the room is empty: The bed is made. No one's there, either.

Everything looks unusually tidy and very quiet.

On an irrational impulse, Wilson goes to the closet and opens it.  
House's clothes hung there, untouched.  
Wilson sighs in brief relief, and fishes his cell phone out of his jacket.  
He dials a number but the call goes to voice mail, which seems to upset him.

WILSON:  
**House…**

... ... ...  
EXT – TRENTON – FRONT OF A BUILDING - DAY

House is standing on the sidewalk, with his cell phone against his ear.  
He doesn't talk but, instead, listens to a message.  
It says…

WILSON:  
(recorded message - voice over)  
**House, it's me. I'm standing in your empty apartment right now;  
more specifically, ****I'm standing in the middle of your bathroom,  
looking at a hole in the wall the size of a bottle of Vicodin…  
****House… Foreman told me you lost ****your patient last night…  
**I know Cuddy gave you the day off and you're probably out, bar hopping,  
**or spending all your money in every strip club in the tri-state area,  
but… ****I'm worried about you, House. Jut don't do anything stupid…  
****Call me when you get this message.**

House hangs up, and put his cell phone back into his pocket, looking unfazed.  
We see him look at the building's entry door.

On the wall, by the side of the entry door, there's a plaque that reads:

Dr. Darryl NOLAN, MD  
Psychiatrist.

House takes a deep breath, pulls the door open and enters the building.

(TBC…)

* * *

**_A/N_**

_I hope I didn't let the Huddy lovers down too much with this one, but I really wanted to stick to the script format as much as possible, which necessarily had to include scenes at the hospital, and also medicine, to a certain extent, so that the rhythm, the visual, and even the characters involved in the story (whether they ultimately seem important or not) would allow to narrate the story as a whole in way that would have a similar pace as the one an episode would have had… _

_I'll post next chapter sometimes next week._

_Thank you all for reading._

_Have a nice day ~ maya _


	3. Chapter 3

_Hi everyone,_

_Thank you to all of you who've stopped by to read this story over the past two weeks._

_A special thank you to all the reviewers, whose kind words encouraged me to go on: StillHaddicted, IHeartHouseCuddy, oc7ober, freeasabird14, MystryGAB, lenasti16, Abby, OldSFfan, HuddyGirl, KiwiClare, Anny Rodrigues, Sandy, Boo's House, CacauHousemaniaca, Amandak82, and the guest reviewer…_

_I'm very grateful that you took the time to leave me a few words._

_Now on to chapter 3 (antepenultimate chapter for this story…)_

* * *

**** HELP ME NOT ****  
**- Chapter 3 -**

INT – TRENTON – NOLAN'S OFFICE – DAY

House enters the room, limping heavily. Nolan is sitting in a chair facing the door.  
He observes silently as House, standing with his back to him, takes his leather jacket off and rests his cane against the wall.  
Finally, as he turns around to face Nolan…

HOUSE:  
**Go ahead, gloat all you want.  
Last time I was here, I called you a charlatan, and now here am I, crawling back to you like a miserable loser.  
You won.**

NOLAN:  
**There's no reason for me to gloat, House. You called me because you needed help,  
which obviously indicates something significant happened that you couldn't deal with alone.  
I don't see cause to rejoice over this…**

House gulps and sits down, heavily slouching in the armchair in front of Nolan.  
A beat.

HOUSE:  
**You asked me what I thought about the **_**Water Lilies **_**reproduction hung in your waiting room the other day…**

Nolan's eyebrows arch up in surprise. He's a bit taken off guard by the unexpected lead-in.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**Well, here's your answer: They're crap! Not the paintings itself I mean, but the message it sends.  
You're selling promises of a quiet, stress-free life while everyone that comes here admittedly does it for the exact opposite reason.  
I suggest you replace your Monet lie with a more accurate painting, like, **_**The Scream**_**, by Edvard Munch…**

Nolan continues to stare at House, but says nothing, focused on what he's saying.  
Then…

NOLAN:  
(Mischievous)  
**You want to talk about the decor in my office. Is that why you're here?**

HOUSE:  
(Sarcastic)  
**Yeah. I suddenly felt the urge to point out the hugely hypocritical design of your furniture.  
That's why I called you in the middle of the night...**

NOLAN:  
(Now serious)  
**So why did you **_**really **_**call me?  
**

House sighs.  
This is it: Time to cut the deflecting crap and be honest for a change.  
He stares challengingly at Nolan for a minute before finally taking a deep breath and…

HOUSE:  
**I lost a patient last night.  
Then I probably ruined my last decent chance at being happy by saying 'no' to the thing I want the most...  
And I almost relapsed.**

NOLAN:  
**Ok.  
**(a pause)  
**What do you want to talk about first?**

House shoots him a look. The irony of Nolan's perfectly unfazed reaction doesn't get lost on him. He nods, acknowledging the psychiatrist's quietness.

HOUSE:  
**You hear about the crane that collapsed here in Trenton?**

NOLAN:  
**Yes. Were you there?**

HOUSE:  
**Yes. It was… messy.**

NOLAN:  
**Your patient, the one that you said you've lost, was he one of the injured?**

HOUSE:  
(Introspective)  
**_She_… It was a she. Hannah. A nice girl…**

NOLAN:  
**What happened?**

HOUSE:  
**She was trapped under a block of concrete. We tried to pull her out, but…  
**(He averts his eyes and stares through the window for a while)  
**Well, eventually, we had to cut her leg off to get her out.**

Nolan raises an eyebrow, his curiosity visibly piqued by that turn of events.

NOLAN:  
**An amputation?**

HOUSE:  
**Yeah.**

NOLAN:  
**On site?**

HOUSE:  
**We tried every other option first. That was-**

NOLAN:  
**Who did the amputation?**

House stares at him with gravity.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
**You did.**

House nods.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
**How did you feel about it?**

HOUSE:  
**Like I said, it was the only option.**

NOLAN:  
**And Cuddy?**

HOUSE:  
**What about her?**

NOLAN:  
**Was she there with you, too?**

HOUSE:  
**You mean, in Trenton?**

NOLAN:  
(Surprised)  
**She wasn't?**

HOUSE:  
**She's the Dean. She supervised the team from PPTH that was sent there.**

NOLAN:  
**Yes, of course.**

HOUSE:  
**But she wasn't there for the amputation.**

NOLAN:  
**I see. Someone else was.**

HOUSE:  
**No, just me and… Hannah.**

NOLAN:  
**You performed an amputation _alone_****?**

House sends him a glare, as if to say "I can do an amputation alone, what's so crazy about that?"

HOUSE:  
**I tried to save Hannah without sacrificing her leg. I waited too long.**

NOLAN:  
**Is that why she died?**

HOUSE:  
**Fat embolism. In the ambulance.**

NOLAN  
**So the amputation went well.**

House snickers.

HOUSE:  
**Yeah, the _amputation _went well.**

NOLAN:  
**How did you feel about it?**

House arches his eyebrows quizzically.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
**About cutting off your patient's leg.**

HOUSE:  
**I told you it was the only option.**

NOLAN:  
**Unlike the ones you had…**

HOUSE:  
(Sarcastic)  
**Yeah, wow, you too see the irony, uh?**

NOLAN:  
**So we're back to my initial question: how did _you _feel about it?**

House looks upset.

HOUSE:  
**Hannah didn't want to be amputated at first. She didn't want to lose her leg.**

NOLAN:  
**That's not really surprising, is it? No one wants to have their limbs cut off without fighting the inevitable first.**

HOUSE:  
(Looking guilty)  
**I agreed with her.**

NOLAN:  
(An epiphany)  
**But Cuddy didn't.**

House stares at him with a 'doh' face.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
(To himself)  
**Interesting…  
**(Then)  
**So what happened?**

HOUSE:  
**We had kind of a big fight… Cuddy and I, I mean.  
Things didn't exactly go very well between us, as you probably guess,  
once it was clear that Hannah needed an amputation,  
and I decided against it.**

NOLAN:  
**Why did you do it?**

HOUSE:  
**Do what?**

NOLAN:  
**Refuse to amputate Hannah? Did you do it to piss off Cuddy?**

HOUSE:  
(Vexed)  
**HUH? You think I would use whether or not to amputate  
one of my patients as a _pretext _to argue with Cuddy?!**

NOLAN:  
**I don't know. Were you?**

House falls silent and stares at Nolan, visibly annoyed by his question.  
A beat.

HOUSE:  
(pride-wounded)  
**It's not what you think. I chose to listen to my patient's wish! I would never—**

NOLAN:  
**So why did you and Cuddy fight?**

HOUSE:  
**Because she… She wanted to amputate right away!  
She didn't even think it was worth giving the other option a chance.**

NOLAN:  
**You said earlier that you waited too long to amputate Hannah.  
So I assume, eventually, Cuddy agreed to wait, too.**

House puffs, upset by Nolan's imperturbable logic.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
**What was your fight really about, then?  
Did you resent Cuddy at the time because of _your _leg?**

HOUSE:  
**Why would I? Cuddy's not responsible for what happened to my leg, I am.**

NOLAN:  
**But she was quick to choose the amputation over a riskier option-**

HOUSE:  
**And she was right. I was… stubborn, and… angry at her.**

NOLAN:  
**Why?**

HOUSE:  
**I don't know… It pissed me off.  
It felt like Hannah losing her leg didn't matter to her.**

NOLAN:  
**It seems to me like it did.**

Nolan stares challengingly at House.  
It's obvious that he knows something doesn't add up, but he'd rather House says it first.  
He leans back in his chair and crosses his hands atop his chest, waiting for House to give him something.  
Finally…

HOUSE:  
(Bitter)  
**I guess she was just eager to get it over with and go home to her fiancé…**

Nolan is thrown. He promptly straightens up in his chair, and frowns.

NOLAN:  
(Cautiously)  
**Wait! You just said 'fiancé'… Is Cuddy… _getting married_?**

House shoots him a pointed look.

NOLAN  
(Still obviously stunned)  
**You didn't tell me that she was. Last time you—**

HOUSE:  
(with a 'doh' face)  
**I didn't tell you because I didn't know!**

NOLAN:  
**I see.**

House rolls his eyes.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
(Pensively)  
**Things seem to be moving quite fast between them…**

House can't help but smile at the irony.

HOUSE:  
(To himself, deadpan)  
**You don't say.**

NOLAN:  
(unaware of House's sarcasm)  
**Tell me what happened exactly.  
How did you find out that Cuddy was getting married?**

House tilts his head back against the chair's backrest and looks up at the ceiling for a minute, as if he were visualizing the moment in his mind's eyes.  
When he looks at Nolan again, his face briefly clouds over with hurt.

HOUSE:  
**I gave her the book.**

NOLAN:  
**Approach To The Acute Abdomen?**

HOUSE:  
**Yeah.**

NOLAN:  
**And what? She didn't like it?**

HOUSE:  
**No, she did. She just…  
**(He closes his eyes for a second)  
**She was a little confused.**

NOLAN:  
**How so?**

HOUSE:  
**She told me she thought it was an engagement present…**

NOLAN:  
**Oh.**

HOUSE:  
(With a forced laugh)  
**Yeah. You should've seen: Most awkward case of misunderstanding of the century!**

NOLAN:  
(Not taking the bait)  
**So how did you feel when you learned about Cuddy's engagement?**

HOUSE:  
**How did I feel? Hmm… How do you think I felt?**

NOLAN:  
(game)  
**Well, considering you said earlier that you and Cuddy had a fight, I assume you felt hurt;  
given that anger is your default emotional defense mechanism…**

House gulps, uneasy.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
(Provoking)  
**Isn't that the reason why you and Cuddy argued?**

HOUSE:  
(sarcastic)  
**Wow. You and Cuddy would get along well—**

NOLAN:  
**What do you mean?**

HOUSE:  
**Because that's exactly what Cuddy thought, too!  
Since, _of course_, everything always has to be about her—**

NOLAN:  
**And it wasn't?**

HOUSE:  
(adamant)  
**No.**

A beat as Nolan studies House's reaction, expecting him to amend his answer.  
When it's obvious that House will stubbornly remain silent…

NOLAN:  
**Ok. So your patient needed an amputation. Cuddy approved of it while you decided to wait-**

HOUSE:  
(snappish)  
**Hannah was _my _patient!  
Again, I didn't decide against the amputation for the sake of arguing with Cuddy.  
That was the _patient's _choice!**

NOLAN:  
**But you still did the amputation, eventually…**

HOUSE:  
(Softer voice)  
**Yeah.**

NOLAN:  
**What changed?**

HOUSE:  
**We were running out of time. Hannah's leg had been trapped under concrete for nearly three hours.  
There was a risk of crush syndrome. When the limb doesn't get enough circulation, it causes—**

NOLAN:  
(waving off, clearly not interested by _that_ part)  
**I don't need you to talk me through the medical aspect of it, House.  
Let's focus back on the reasons that led to Hannah's amputation.**

HOUSE:  
(Cynical)  
**Well, a _medical _reason led to the amputation!**

NOLAN:  
(more conciliatory)  
**Alright. But who convinced Hannah to change her mind?**

House sighs heavily.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
(surprised)  
**You did?**

A long pause, as House seems to search for his words.

HOUSE:  
**After Cuddy and I had… a fight, we… Well, she told me to stay out of it  
and that she would convince Hannah to do it.**

NOLAN:  
**Oh. So Cuddy was the one getting Hannah's approval?**

HOUSE:  
**Not really...**  
**Hannah trusted me.  
Cuddy tried to talk to her but-she wouldn't listen.**

NOLAN:  
**So what did you do?**

HOUSE:  
**What do you think? I went down there and I persuaded her it was her only option**.

NOLAN:  
**And Cuddy was there with you?**

House shrugs, but says nothing.  
Nolan nods, interpreting that as a 'yes.'

NOLAN (Cont'd):  
**So Cuddy was there while you talked to Hannah.  
What did you say to her?**

HOUSE:  
**I just told you! I told her it was the only option.**

NOLAN:  
**I mean, what did you _specifically _tell her to convince her?**

HOUSE:  
(Annoyed)  
**Why does it matter?**

NOLAN:  
(Unfazed)  
**I think it's interesting.**

House puffs.

HOUSE:  
**You want to hear about the part where the gimpy doctor uses the power of metaphor  
to explain how amputation is such a better solution in the end?**

NOLAN:  
**I just think it's important to know what kind of arguments you used to convince Hannah.**

HOUSE:  
(Resentfully)  
**Fine! You wanna know what I said?  
I told her that losing her leg was nothing compared to the unbearable pain she'd have to face if we didn't cut it off.  
Because, eventually, stubbornly fighting to keep it proves not to be worthy-**

NOLAN:  
(Slightly impressed)  
**Is that _really_ what you said?**

HOUSE:  
(Irritated)  
**What?**

NOLAN:  
**That you thought amputation was the most _reasonable _choice?**

HOUSE:  
**Yes. Because it was…  
In _Hannah's _case.**

NOLAN:  
**So it had nothing to do with you, reflecting on your own choice to refuse amputation after your infarction?**

HOUSE:  
(Growing more and more unnerved)  
**What part of 'that was the _only _option' do you not understand?**

NOLAN:  
**I understand that. But you have to agree that the obvious parallel with your situation made for a good case argument.**

HOUSE:  
(Deflecting)  
**When time's running out, sometimes, you need to lie to your patient to make things move on faster.**

NOLAN:  
**So you actually don't believe that amputation was the better option?**

HOUSE:  
(Yelling)  
**She was going to _die_!  
**(Softer voice)  
**And she did, anyway…**

Nolan's thoughts turn inward for a minute as he's processing what House has just said.  
Then…

NOLAN:  
**You said that you were alone when you did the amputation.  
Where did Cuddy go?**

HOUSE:  
**Huh?**

NOLAN:  
**You two had a fight. Then, she was there with you when you talked Hannah into giving you her consent…  
**(Pausing to think)  
**What was Cuddy's reaction?**

HOUSE:  
**You're asking me what _Cuddy_'s reaction was?**

NOLAN:  
**Yes.**

HOUSE:  
(Sarcatically dismissive)  
**I don't know. I guess I didn't pay attention to _her_,  
probably something to do with me being busy  
trying to convince _my patient _to cut her leg off, instead!**

NOLAN:  
**So what? She left?**

HOUSE:  
**Yes.**

NOLAN:  
**Yet, she could have assisted you—**

HOUSE:  
(exasperated)  
**I told her to leave, ok? That I would handle it myself.**

NOLAN:  
(nodding calmly)  
**You wanted to spare her.**

HOUSE:  
**I _was _handling it! Cuddy didn't _have to _stay.  
Hannah was not the only person injured back there.  
There were other people that needed medical attention…**

NOLAN:  
(looking for clarification)  
**So you did the amputation, _alone_, and then Hannah was brought to the hospital?**

HOUSE:  
**She made it to the ambulance, yeah.**

NOLAN:  
**And you went with her?**

HOUSE:  
**Yes.**

NOLAN:  
**But Cuddy stayed on site?**

HOUSE:  
**Yes. I told you there were other people that needed—**

NOLAN:  
**So you didn't talk to her after that?**

House noticeably stiffens in his chair.

HOUSE:  
(defensively)  
**About what?**

NOLAN:  
**Hmm, about a lot of things: You'd just learned that she and Lucas were getting married.  
You had a fight. Then, you lost your patient en route after performing an amputation  
you'd first refused to do, clearly disagreeing with your boss.  
You didn't think you two maybe had some… issues you needed to discuss?**

House lets out a derisive laugh.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
**What's funny?**

HOUSE:  
**Actually, yes. We had a discussion—**

NOLAN:  
**When she came back to the hospital-**

HOUSE:  
**Not exactly…**

House scratches the back of his head, looking suddenly embarrassed.  
Nolan stares at him, expectantly, waiting for a clarification.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**She came to my place.**

NOLAN:  
**To apologize?**

HOUSE:  
**That's one way to look at it…  
She—  
**(Clears his throat)  
**She told me she wanted a relationship with me.**

Nolan is thrown.  
For a long while, he just stares at House, looking completely flabbergasted.

NOLAN:  
**Ok. Now _that_ is definitely an unexpected development.**

HOUSE:  
**Yeah. Few hours early, she said she didn't love me;  
basically told me to get lost and leave her alone and then she dumped her fiancé,  
and showed up at my place in the middle of the night.**

NOLAN:  
(Still processing the news)  
**That sounds… err-**

HOUSE:  
**Stupid?**

NOLAN:  
**I was going to say unpredictable… surprising.**

HOUSE:  
**Yeah.**

NOLAN:  
**What did she say?**

HOUSE:  
**She said she loved me.**

NOLAN:  
**Well, at least _that _is predictable.  
I mean, if she decided to dump the man she was going to marry for you…**

House looks away.  
Before he does, Nolan catches a glimpse of uneasiness in his eyes.

NOLAN:  
(Stating the obvious)  
**You seem… hmm… strangely quiet about this.**

HOUSE:  
(Defensive)  
**What's that supposed to mean?**

NOLAN:  
**Cuddy broke off her engagement… _for you_.  
Are you telling me that's not what you've been wishing for all this time?**

HOUSE:  
**Well, yeah! Can't say I'm not happy she finally decided to ditch that man child—**

NOLAN:  
**What about you?**

HOUSE:  
**What about me?**

NOLAN:  
**Cuddy chose you. The question is: did _you _want her to choose you?**

HOUSE:  
**Huh?**

NOLAN:  
**Obviously you've been lusting after her for a long time.  
How did you feel when she came to you?**

HOUSE:  
(Uneasy)  
**I... I was surprised.**

NOLAN:  
**In a good... or bad way?**

HOUSE:  
**I don't know. I guess, I didn't really think that far at the time.  
I was mostly just... surprised.**

NOLAN:  
**Ok. Let's put it differently: Do you love her, House?**

A beat.  
House stares intensely at Nolan, his face undecipherable.  
Finally...

HOUSE:  
**Yes.**

NOLAN:  
**_Why?_**

HOUSE:  
**Have you never seen Cuddy, uh?  
I mean, obviously you haven't, coz if you had, surely you wouldn't ask that question!**

NOLAN:  
**Why wouldn't I?**

HOUSE:  
**Oh, please! You perfectly know _why_: Cuddy's hot.  
You'd have to be gay, or impotent not to want to do her...**

NOLAN:  
**Alright. So you're neither gay... nor impotent... at least, I assume you're not...  
Is that the issue, here? Are you impotent, House?**

HOUSE:  
(Upset)  
**What? NO! What kind of a question is that?**

NOLAN:  
(Unfazed)  
**I don't know. I'm just following your lead.  
By your own words: Cuddy's hot so you want to do her;  
which is a natural reaction any heterosexual man with no erectile dysfunction  
would logically have. Hence, it's also purely physiological-**

Nolan shoots him an amused grin.  
House stares at him, annoyed.  
A beat.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
**House, we're not talking about a hooker you'd call to satisfy a sexual need.  
We're talking about Cuddy... So you can choose to deflect and define your attraction to her  
in a strictly hormonal way, or... you can answer my question... Why do you _l__ove _her?**

House continues to stare at him, still stubbornly silent.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
(looking intrigued)  
**Unless... you don't know the answer to that question...**

HOUSE:  
(Angrily)  
**Of course I do!**

NOLAN:  
(Deadpan)  
**But you still won't say it out loud.**

House sighs heavily, and squirms in his seat.  
He looks like he's struggling to put words on something that seems to overwhelm him.  
Nolan looks at him with a neutral face, waiting patiently for the moment when he'll finally let go.  
And then...

HOUSE:  
(With a throaty voice, almost grumbling)  
**She understands me.**

NOLAN:  
**_Wilson _understands you.**

HOUSE:  
(Puffing)  
**Wilson's a _guy_! And we've already established that I am not gay.**

NOLAN:  
**I'm just saying, understanding you doesn't seem like something  
that is primarily sexually attractive to you.**

HOUSE:  
**It's different...**

NOLAN:  
**How?**

House sighs again, still struggling.

HOUSE:  
**Cuddy didn't just give me a job, she… gave me a reason to do it…**

Nolan silently nods to prompt House to go on.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**She believes in me.**

NOLAN:  
**So does your team.**

HOUSE:  
**Not really. They don't have a choice.  
They know that, eventually, my decisions will overrule theirs…**

NOLAN:  
(Processing what House just said)  
**But… Cuddy does have a choice. She can say 'no' to you.  
You're not her boss. She's yours…**

House nods shyly in agreement.

HOUSE:  
**She trusts my judgment.**

NOLAN:  
**Why wouldn't she? You're a great diagnostician.**

HOUSE:  
**With unconventional methods.**

NOLAN:  
**Would you rather she said 'no' to you?**

HOUSE:  
**Oh, but she does!**

NOLAN:  
**But you don't listen to her anyway.**

HOUSE:  
**Yeah, I do.**

NOLAN:  
**Why?**

HOUSE:  
**Because… she takes risks, too. For me.  
I know she doesn't say 'no' to me just because she's a coward.**

House looks away for a minute, hesitating.  
Then…

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**She thinks I'm smart. And funny...  
Well, sometimes she thinks that.  
Sometimes she also thinks I'm just a giant pain in the ass.**

NOLAN:  
**Does it make you feel good?**

HOUSE:  
(With a smartass smile)  
**What? Being a pain in her ass?**

NOLAN:  
(Not taking the bait)  
**The fact that Cuddy approves of your medical judgments.  
Do you like that about her?**

A beat, as House seems to give it a real thought.

HOUSE:  
(With blunt honesty)  
**I like to impress her.**

NOLAN:  
**You like to impress everyone.**

House looks down briefly in embarrassment.

HOUSE:  
(In a whisper)  
**I like to impress her more…**

NOLAN:  
**Why?**

HOUSE:  
**Because I like the look in her eyes when I do.  
**(Then, before Nolan can react…)  
**Which Wilson has too, by the way, but it strangely doesn't have the same effect on me—  
**(sarcastic, faking to be shocked)  
**Oh my God! So…. I'm _not_ gay?**

Pleased with his theatrical little antics, House looks at Nolan challengingly, waiting for his deflecting remark to get him out of it.  
But…

NOLAN:  
(Not buying it)  
**So you're saying you like that your intelligence turns Cuddy on.**

HOUSE:  
**That, and that other thing in my pants, I hope!  
Otherwise, I'm facing some endless, very boring trivia nights,  
instead of spending them having hot sex with her...**

Nolan smiles, amused.

NOLAN:  
**You have a point. So she's attracted to you.  
Intellectually, and sexually. What about you?**

HOUSE:  
**Doh, I-**

NOLAN:  
(Time to cut the crap…)  
**Let's leave the sexual part out of it. I meant, _intellectually_...  
Do you think Cuddy is an intelligent woman?**

HOUSE:  
**Sometimes.**

Nolan scowls.  
Obviously, he wants serious answers.  
House knows it and rolls his eyes.  
A beat.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**Fine! Yes. She's smart.**

NOLAN:  
**Does that turn you on, too?**

HOUSE:  
**I don't know. She can do some pretty stupid things, too.**

NOLAN:  
(Deliberately provoking)  
**Like, break off her engagement and run to you afterwards?**

This time, it's House's turn to scowl.  
But he's taken the hint.  
He locks eyes with Nolan and silently nods.  
Nolan nods, too, to acknowledge House's effort to stop deflecting.  
A beat.

HOUSE:  
(honest)  
**She understands my weaknesses.**

NOLAN:  
**In a way that Wilson doesn't?**

HOUSE:  
**In a way that isn't overly concerned... Cuddy's there for me...  
Because she cares... She stands up for me.**

Leaned back in his chair, Nolan crosses his hands over his chest, and keeps nodding, silently encouraging House to go on.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**But she doesn't buy my bluff.  
If I screwed up, she'd kick my ass without second thought.**

NOLAN:  
**So you trust her.**

HOUSE:  
(Averting his eyes, looking almost ashamed of his confession)  
**Yeah.**

House falls silent and stares at Nolan, expecting him to say something so that he won't have to speak.  
Of course, Nolan doesn't say anything. Instead, he just studies House's reaction closely, his body language speaking louder than his words.  
House sighs, somehow resigned to go on, as Nolan won't visibly speak first.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**She knows I'm screwed-up, and yet... she doesn't care.**

NOLAN:  
**And… that bothers you?**

HOUSE:  
**No. I mean... I don't know... She still chose to be with me.**

NOLAN:  
**The question is: Why does it surprise you?**

A faint ironic smile flickers on House's face.

HOUSE:  
**Actually, it doesn't. Cuddy's never known what she wanted.  
She's an utopist. She believes in the victory of Good over Evil...  
And yet, she runs head first into trouble anyway, without even realizing that she does.**

NOLAN:  
**And in this scenario, _you _are the trouble.**

HOUSE:  
**I'm not exactly the safest choice for a woman! Even less so for a woman like her... She just showed up and—**

House stops in the middle of his sentence and averts his eyes.  
Nolan frowns intrigued and suddenly his eyes grow wide as he seems to have an epiphany.

NOLAN:  
(Stating more than asking)  
**You said 'no' to her.**

House is taken aback. He clearly didn't expect Nolan to put the pieces of the puzzle together so fast…

NOLAN (cont'd):  
**You said earlier that you said 'no' to the thing you wanted the most.  
It seems safe now to assume that you were referring to Cuddy. Am I right?**

House gulps uneasy.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
(Intrigued by House's silence)  
**Unless… You _didn't _actually push her away… Not definitely, that is…**

House takes a deep breath and imperceptibly nods.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
**Alright, so Cuddy came to you, told you she loved you and—**

House stares at Nolan, somehow challenging him to find the answer by himself.

HOUSE:  
(Provoking)  
**You're the psychiatrist, here. Do that psychic thing you do:  
She threw herself at me and, instead of having sex with her, I called you…  
So what? Does that mean I've been secretly in love with _you _all along…**

NOLAN (cont'd)  
(Game, smiling)  
**No… You pushed Cuddy away, but you didn't definitely say 'no' to her, either.  
You didn't _want _to. Obviously, this is not a case of unrequited love.  
Something else stopped you…**

House looks more and more uncomfortable and bows his head in shame.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
**You relapsed! Of course…  
**(Almost as if talking to himself)  
**You'd lost Hannah. You thought Cuddy was getting married… And Wilson…  
Wilson is moving on with Sam. You were left alone. And miserable…  
The world's slowly closing in on you. So you took refuge in Vicodin—**

HOUSE:  
(Deadpan)  
**You're wrong. I didn't take the Vicodin.**

Nolan arches an eyebrow, intrigued.

NOLAN:  
**You said you _almost_ relapsed-**

HOUSE:  
**But I didn't. I…  
**(He gulps)  
**I was about to.**

NOLAN:  
**You mean… when Cuddy showed up?**

HOUSE:  
**Yeah.**

He's staring at Nolan with his eyes wide, as if saying 'you see my problem, now?"

NOLAN:  
(Nodding, as he's finally putting the pieces of the puzzles together slowly)  
**You got scared... If you let your guard down for her and it didn't work,  
ultimately she'd have betrayed the trust you put in her as a woman... a partner... a friend.  
Which means, you know you'd lose her for good if this relationship didn't work, and that terrifies you.**

House doesn't answer. He turns his head away instead, as hurt clouds his face over.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
(Softly)  
**Yet, you've been wanting for that to happen for months… _years _even. So what stopped you?**

HOUSE:  
(Defeated)  
**I'm not right for her.**

NOLAN:  
**Why do you say that? She _loves _you. If you trust her professionally,  
why don't you trust her to know exactly how she feels?**

HOUSE:  
**She has a child! And I'm an addict.**

NOLAN:  
**She had a child last year, too. And you are a _recovering _addict.**

HOUSE:  
**Who almost _relapsed_!**

NOLAN:  
**You've been through a lot yesterday.  
I say, in that specific circumstances, _considering _Vicodin  
as a solution to avoid being hurt was conceivable.  
You are _human_, House. You have the right to feel down, or have doubts…  
And in that case, feeling vulnerable is not a weakness.  
It's an emotion… And you still called me. You found the strength to call for help, instead of relapsing.  
**(To himself)  
**_No_… this is not what stopped you…**

House looks down, and Nolan notices his discomfort.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
**You are afraid. Afraid—of _what_, House?**

No answer.

NOLAN (cont'd)  
(A bit wearily)  
**If you want my help, you need to give me something-**

HOUSE:  
(Looking lost and confused)  
**Why? _Why _did she do that?**

NOLAN:  
**I don't have the answer to that. You do…**

House looks him straight in the eyes, and clenches his jaw tight.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
(Taken off guard)  
**You don't?...  
(Studying House's reaction)**  
**Cuddy professed her love for you and you… wait!... _don't know_ why? Is that it?**

HOUSE:  
(Angry and defensive)  
**I'm sorry, but it's not exactly like there were some foreboding signs I could have relied on,  
what with her yelling at me that she didn't love me, while being engaged to _another _man!**

NOLAN:  
(Empathically)  
**So _that's _the reason why you pushed her away.  
Because you're not absolutely sure of her feelings for you!**

HOUSE:  
(Accusingly)  
**How am I supposed to be? She said she wanted to see if we could _work_!**

NOLAN:  
**Wasn't that somehow very brave of her?**

HOUSE:  
**_Brave_?! How the hell is _that _brave?**

NOLAN:  
**She chose to listen to her heart in spite of the risks. Cuddy's a smart woman.  
You said so yourself. Don't you think she must have weighed her decision—**

HOUSE:  
**Thing is, _no_. I don't. And you don't, either. Don't mess with me, Nolan:  
I saw your reaction when I told you why Cuddy showed up at my place. Even you were stunned by it!**

NOLAN:  
(Pragmatic)  
**Love is not rational—**

HOUSE:  
**Bullshit! You're supposed to be the voice of reason in this room.  
Look me in the eyes and tell me you _really _think what she did wasn't stupid?**

NOLAN:  
**I can't tell you that.**

House puffs, upset.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
**What I can tell you, though, is that being with you is obviously, and unquestionably, what Cuddy wants…  
And it seems equally obvious to me that it is what _you _want, as well…  
Otherwise, you wouldn't be sitting here right now, expecting my advice.**

HOUSE:  
**Well, then, be useful for a change, and tell me what I should do!**

Nolan looks at him with a fond, almost fatherly smile.

NOLAN:  
**This is not my call. House, you've come a long way. I'm sure Cuddy sees it.  
You've been attracted to each other for a long time.  
Maybe, she decided that it was time to finally acknowledge it.**

HOUSE:  
(Puffing)  
**Pfff. This is crap!**

NOLAN:  
**Yet, this is the only advice you will receive from me: Take a leap of faith. _It's time_.  
Cuddy was brave enough for the both of you to do something bold, and risky, because she loves you.  
Be thankful and embrace that opportunity to finally be with her…**

HOUSE:  
(Sefl-conscious)  
**But what if she made a mistake?**

NOLAN:  
(Softly)  
**Love is not a science, House. There is no undeniable truth in it. No puzzle to solve.  
You can't tell in advance if it's going to work or not because there's no unwavering rule that governs it…  
I know it's scary, but eventually, love is always worth the risk…**

HOUSE:  
**Is it?**

NOLAN:  
**It is, if this is what you want… Is that what you want, House? Be with Cuddy?**

House shyly nods in agreement.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
**Then, go ahead. Take the risk.**

HOUSE:  
(Fatalistic)  
**I pushed her away.**

NOLAN:  
**You did it because, deep down, you knew you had to give it a _real _chance.  
If anything, it's only proof that it mattered to you…**

House rubs his leg, and winces.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
**Your leg… Does it hurt?**

HOUSE:  
(snappish)  
**What do you think?  
I'm on Ibubrofen, for God's sake! It barely takes the edge off.**

NOLAN:  
**Are you still concerned that you might want to take Vicodin?**

HOUSE:  
(Sarcastic)  
**Well, not if I want to be with Cuddy, obviously!**

NOLAN:  
**You make it sound like it is a price to pay…**

HOUSE:  
**And it isn't?**

NOLAN:  
**House, your sobriety is something you decide to hang on to for yourself, not _anyone else_…**

HOUSE:  
**I'm not quite sure Cuddy would agree with that.**

NOLAN:  
(Smartass grin)  
**You said you were about to take Vicodin when she showed up. Did it stop her?**

HOUSE:  
(Honest)  
**No… She said it was my choice if I wanted to go back on drugs…**

NOLAN:  
**She's a very smart woman...**

House is still rubbing his leg.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
**I can give you the name of a physiotherapist, if you need one. It might help-**

HOUSE:  
**No, thanks. I already know someone.**

NOLAN:  
**Really?**

HOUSE:  
(Waggling his eyebrows)  
**She's not really a physiotherapist, _per se_, but she does have very skilled hands…**

NOLAN:  
(Incredulous)  
**A hooker?**

HOUSE:  
**See? Now you're just being judgmental!  
Hookers have other skills, you know, aside from the more obvious ones…**

NOLAN:  
**House, I'm just saying, if you decide to be in a relationship with Cuddy,  
I would advise you to find a _real_ physiotherapist…**

HOUSE:  
**Of course, now that I'm not asking you anything is when you decide to give me your opinion!  
Brandi just massages my leg. Where's the problem in that?**

NOLAN:  
**I'm not going to give you an answer to that because I trust you to know what it is already…**

House rolls his eyes dramatically.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
**House, you're smart. You don't want to jeopardize your relationship  
with the woman you love just because you'd rather prove a point…  
You have to ask yourself: is it worth it?**

HOUSE:  
**So that's what it is, uh? If I'm with Cuddy,  
I will have to give up everything I have just to please her—**

NOLAN  
(with an amused smile)  
**That's not what I said. Relationships are about compromising,  
not giving up your entire personality to become someone you're not!**

HOUSE:  
**Good. Because I'm not gonna change…**

NOLAN:  
**No one is asking you to. Something even tells me Cuddy wouldn't have come to you  
if she didn't know exactly what to expect…**

HOUSE:  
(Seeking for reassurance)  
**How am I supposed to know what she expects?**

NOLAN:  
**Ask her.**

HOUSE:  
**Ask her?**

NOLAN:  
**Yes, House, _ask her_. Cuddy told you she loved you  
and your first reaction was to freak out about it.  
If it can reassure you and help you take that leap of faith with her,  
ask her to tell you what her feelings are…**

HOUSE:  
(Still emotionally unsure)  
**What if she changed her mind? Or didn't know the answer herself?**

NOLAN:  
(Reassuringly)  
**She will… And if she doesn't, either way, you will know exactly where you stand at.  
You need to deal with your fears by addressing them, House,  
which means you need to talk to Cuddy about them.  
If you can't be honest with the person you love, then there's no point in loving them at all.**

House shakes his head left and right, obviously wanting to mock Nolan's romantic little spiel.

HOUSE:  
(smiling ironically, but mostly teasing)  
**Jesus Christ, that Oprah side in you is so annoying!**

NOLAN:  
(standing up, and smiling in the same teasing way)  
**Yes, House, I'm a "faith healer." You can choose to take my advice,  
or you can choose not to. It's up to you.**

House stands up as well, taking Nolan's cue that the session is over.

HOUSE:  
**Feels strangely like you're not leaving me much choice.**

He takes his leather jacket, and puts it on.

NOLAN:  
(With genuine care)  
**You know that's not true. The choice is yours.  
I'm just saying: You deserve to be happy, House.**

The seriousness in Nolan's tone makes House pause for a second.  
He and Nolan locks eyes, and House finally nods in silent agreement.  
Nolan holds out his hand. House takes it and shakes it.

NOLAN (cont'd):  
**Same time next week?**

HOUSE:  
**Whoa, whoa, don't get excited all of a sudden!  
I never said I was going to need your annoying advice on a weekly basis!**

Nolan looks disappointed for a second, but says nothing.  
House acknowledges his reaction and quickly averts his eyes.  
Then, unexpectedly…

HOUSE (cont'd):  
(With a smartass grin)  
**Fine. Maybe I'll stop by… See how you're doing…  
Something tells me you're dying to hear about Cuddy's exploits in the sack…  
**(He squints, playfully adding)  
**Or mine…**

Nolan rolls his eyes, but his smiles is one of genuine relief, as he understands that it is House's way to tell him that he maybe won't quit therapy entirely.

NOLAN:  
(Walking House to the door)  
**So you're going to see her now, uh?**

HOUSE:  
(With gravity)  
**Not just now… There's something I need to do first…**

Nolan arches an eyebrow, curious.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**Don't worry, I'm not going to get high!**

NOLAN:  
(Sincerely)  
**I know you're not.**

HOUSE:  
**Good…  
See you, then?**

Nolan nods, and opens the door.

NOLAN:  
**Good luck, House.**

… … …  
EXT – TRENTON – CEMETARY – DAY

House leans against a tree, obviously spying on something.  
Following his gaze, we can see a group of people in the distance, standing next to a coffin.  
There're flowers everywhere.  
People are grieving, holding and comforting each other in a sad moment.  
We recognize Hannah's husband, Charlie.  
He's crying.  
House stares intensely at him.  
He looks profoundly sorry for him.

Suddenly, Charlie looks up and notices House.  
House instantly knows he's been spotted.  
He promptly pushes himself off of the tree trunk and turns on his heel, limping away as fast as he can.  
From afar, we see Hannah's husband speak a few words to the priest before striding towards House.  
He quickly catches up with him.

CHARLIE:  
**Dr. House?...  
**(House keeps walking)  
**Dr. House!**

Finally, House stops and turns around.  
He looks uneasy.

HOUSE:  
(Looking down in shame)  
**Sorry, I—I didn't mean to… I—I shouldn't be here—Sorry.**

He starts walking away again.

CHARLIE:  
(A bit accusingly)  
**Wait! Why are you here?**

House sighs heavily and finally stops running away.  
He faces Hannah's husband again.

HOUSE:  
**I—I called the morgue. They said the funeral was today. I just-**

Charlie stares at him incredulous, trying to process what's happening.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**That was a bad idea. I'm probably the last person you want to see today.**

CHARLIE:  
**No… I just didn't think that—**

HOUSE:  
**The man who killed your wife would be stupid enough to show up at her funeral?**

CHARLIE:  
(Shocked)  
**You didn't kill Hannah!**

HOUSE:  
(Snappish)  
**Sure, coz that's not her right now, lying in that coffin?**

Charlie's face clouds over with immense hurt and sorrow.

CHARLIE:  
(Staring straight into House's eyes)  
**Yes. That's my wife there. She's dead, and I'm burying her today.**

House bows his head in shame.

CHARLIE (Cont'd):  
**But you didn't kill her.**

House looks up again. He seems surprised.

HOUSE:  
(Guilty)  
**I couldn't save her.**

CHARLIE:  
**You tried.**

HOUSE:  
**And I failed.**

CHARLIE:  
**You did everything you could, right? You _really _did everything.**

HOUSE:  
(With a sad voice)  
**Yeah, I did.**

CHARLIE:  
**Thank you.**

House's eyes widen in utter surprise.  
He's visibly completely taken aback by Hannah's husband reaction.

CHARLIE (cont'd):  
**You took care of her. She was trapped under that building—  
**(his voice breaks with a sob. He clears his throats and pulls himself together)  
**She could have died alone, and scared, with no one with her.  
But _you _were there. You stayed with her.  
You pulled her out of that pile of rubble and you brought her back to me.**

House continues to stare at him, looking completely stunned.

CHARLIE (cont'd)  
**I got to tell her I loved her one last time, thanks to you.  
I was there, with her, and I held her hand until the last second.  
And I would never have been able to do that if you hadn't taken care of her...**

HOUSE:  
**And yet, she died anyway—**

Charlie nods in silence, simply acknoledging a fact, looking sad.

CHARLIE:  
**You tried to save her. You didn't just give up.  
Things don't always end the way we would want them to, but…  
we still keep **_**trying**. _**We **_**have to**... _**Right?**

House stares intensely at Charlie, processing his words and, somehow, their double-meaning…  
A long beat.

CHARLIE:  
**Dr. House, please, join us.**

House's eyes widen in panic.

HOUSE:  
**No! No, I don't think I—**

CHARLIE:  
(Insisting)  
**_Please_. I'm sure Hannah would have wanted you to be here...**

Another beat.  
House shoots a glance at the group of family and friends that's still gathered near Hannah's grave.  
They all stare in their direction, waiting.  
House gulps, and searches in Charlie's gaze for approval one last time.  
Charlie nods.  
Finally…

HOUSE:  
**Ok.**

They both start walking side by side towards Hannah's grave.  
From afar, we see Charlie introduce House to the other persons present.  
House shakes a few hands, and then stands awkwardly amidst the group.  
The priest begins to speak. Everyone joins hands in front of their chest and bows their head to pray.  
House, looking straight ahead, grips his cane's handle tighter…

(TBC…)

* * *

**_A/N_**

_I hope you're still enjoying this story, despite its lack of House and Cuddy scenes so far._

_It really seemed important to me to address other issues first, before writing the inevitable "get together" Huddy scene which, as you probably guess, is coming up next!_

_Thing is, I didn't decide to derail the end of Help Me just for the sake of messing with the show's storyline. Don't get me wrong: I LOVED Help Me as it was. When I first decided to write this story, though, I wanted to give House a chance to address some of the issues that later turned out to be what sadly caused his relationship to fail._

_I know the end of Help Me is beautifully romantic as it is, but I also liked the idea of House being brave enough to acknowledge that what happened that night was a life-changing event, and that it deserved to be pondered, to bloom into a potentially beautiful and passionate – albeit dysfunctional – lasting relationship, which is why I wanted to write a scene with Nolan, where he'd have helped House in this huge leap of faith he's about to take… :)_

_Take care ~ maya_


	4. Chapter 4

_Hi everyone,_

_So here's the last chapter!  
__Sorry for the delay, I've been completely sucked into the mad, mad World Cup spiral… :P  
__As promised, this chapter is about Cuddy and House finally getting together.  
__It will therefore surely feel less like a script as I couldn't resist the urge to give more details to describe the scenes! Heh._

_But, I still wanted to focus on creating a visual as much as possible, so I tried to write it in dialogues the most and, well, for the things that can't be said out loud ... you'll see! ;)  
_

_I hope you'll like it._

_NB: I used one of the most famous lines of 'Now What' in this chapter (I'll let you find out which) because it was so beautifully perfect... There was really no point in even trying to compete or find another one._

_Diclaimer: Not mine.  
_

* * *

**** HELP ME NOT ****  
**- chapter 4 -**

EXT – NEW JERSEY - RANDOM LOCATIONS – DAY

House is riding his bike in the middle of nowhere.  
The landscapes keep changing as he's speeding through forests, in the countryside, by the ocean…  
His eyes are focused on the road.  
His face is undecipherable.

… … …  
INT – HOUSE'S APARTMENT - BATHROOM – DAY

We can see the hole in the wall, as House enters the room, carrying a toolbox.  
Leaned against the tub, there's a rectangular object, wrapped in Manila paper.  
House looks alternatively at the package, then at the hole in the wall.  
He sighs.

[CUT]

House is staring at his reflection in the mirror – a new one - above the washbasin.  
He stands there for a long while, with a screwdriver in his hand.  
He finally leans down and throws the screwdriver into the toolbox then sits on the edge of the tub, rubbing his thigh for a minute.  
From the hallway, we see his silhouette hunched forward as he continues to massage his leg.  
He glances in the hallway's direction, and then gets up.

[CUT]

We hear the water flowing.  
The curtain is drawn.  
The sound of the water stops. House's arm appears from behind the curtain.  
He grabs a towel.

[CUT]

Wet from a shower, House is standing in front of the mirror with a towel wrapped around his waist. He leans forward and looks closely at the wound on his collarbone.  
By the washbasin, he retrieves a medical kit and proceeds with changing his bandage.  
When the protective dressing is applied, he enters his bedroom through the adjoining door.

… … …  
INT – HOUSE'S APARTMENT – KITCHEN – DAY

Now dressed, House is lying on his back on the kitchen floor, with his upper body hidden under the sink.  
We hear some noises.  
Finally, he pushes himself out of the cabinet and reappears, carrying a small, metallic box.  
Grabbing the edge of the kitchen counter above his head for leverage, he gets up…

… … …  
INT – HOUSE'S APARTMENT – LIVING ROOM – DAY

The closet door in the hallway is opened.  
Some books have been removed from the shelves and lie randomly on the floor.  
House is sitting on his couch.  
In front of him, there are different items displayed on the coffee table:  
The metallic box, a sock, a biker's glove, and a thick book with a leather cover.  
Leaning forward, House reaches for the first object on the table: The metallic box.

He opens it.

Inside, there's a bottle of Oxycodon. The name of the patient written on it is not House's. The bottle of pills is half-empty.  
House opens it and empties the content of the orange bottle into a plastic bag.  
Meticulously, he repeats the same action again with the other items, in more pills are concealed: Wrapped inside a handkerchief in the sock; in a plastic bottle, inside the book - which pages have been cut in the center; in a small plastic bag inside the glove…

One after the other, he determinedly puts all the pills inside the plastic bag.  
Then he intensely stares at his hand, holding the bag for a long while…  
Finally, he gets up and limps heavily towards the bathroom, without the help of his cane, carrying the plastic bag in one hand.

… … …  
INT – HOUSE'S APARTMENT - BATHROOM – DAY

House opens the plastic bag and takes a pill from it.  
He stares at it for a long while, breathing heavily.  
We see him glance at his reflection in the newly-installed mirror. He looks tormented.  
After a minute, he gulps and throws the pill into the toilet.

We see the bottom of the toilet pan where the pill has dropped, and is now starting to slowly dissolve into water. House looks intensely at it for a while, as if mesmerized by the process.  
On impulse, he suddenly empties the rest of the plastic bag into the toilet in one quick move, and flushes it without even looking back.  
He quickly exits the bathroom, and limps to the living room.

He sits at the piano, and plays for a while.  
House gets up, and rubs his leg.  
He starts pacing in his apartment, looking nervous.  
Then he sits on the couch and fishes his cellphone out of his jeans' pocket.  
He stares at the cell for a while, then dials a number and brings the receiver against his ear, rubbing his forehead wearily.  
As the call gets through…

HOUSE:  
**Mom?**

… … …  
INT – BLYTHE'S HOUSE – BEDROOM - EVENING

Blythe is standing next to her bed, wearing a bathrobe.  
Her hair is wet. She's visibly just taken a shower.

BLYTHE:  
(Surprised)  
**Greg? Is that you?**

HOUSE:  
**Yeah, it's me—**

BLYTHE:  
(Into phone)  
**Is everything ok?**

[INTERCUT AS NECESSARY.]

HOUSE:  
(Embarrassed)  
**Yes, mom. I was just calling to see how you were.**

BLYTHE:  
**I'm good, honey. I'm—yes, I'm fine. Thank you.  
**(A beat)  
**How about you? **

A long silence.

BLYTHE:  
**Greg?**

HOUSE:  
**Mom—was I ever happy when I was a kid?**

BLYTHE:  
(Confused)  
**Huh? Where does that come from?**

HOUSE:  
(Into phone)  
**Was I?**

BLYTHE:  
**Yes. Of course you were, honey. **

HOUSE:  
**How do you know?**

BLYTHE:  
**Aww Greg, because you were a very joyful little boy.  
You laughed and you ran everywhere, always bursting with energy…  
****I remember your father had given you that toy.  
****It was a boat, and you'd spend hours in the backyard,  
****playing with it and that plastic bowl.**

HOUSE:  
**Yeah. Until dad crushed it with his foot...**

BLYTHE:  
(Into phone)  
**I'm sure he didn't mean to.**

HOUSE:  
(Bitterly)  
**No. Of course, he didn't mean to.**

BLYTHE:  
**Greg, you sure everything's ok?**

HOUSE:  
**Yes, don't worry. I'm fine. Actually, I think I'm— happy.**

BLYTHE:  
**Really? Well, I'm happy to hear that, honey. You solved a difficult case?**

HOUSE:  
(Uneasy)  
**Not really… Thing is, I—well, it's-**

In Blythe's home, we see Thomas Bell enter the bedroom.  
He's wearing a bathrobe, too.  
He approaches Blythe with a mischievous smile, until he notices she's on the phone.

THOMAS:  
**Who's that?**

HOUSE:  
(Into phone)  
**You have a visitor?**

BLYTHE:  
(Shushing Thomas)  
**No… I mean, yes. It's just that it's my turn to host the traditional bridge night with the neighbors.  
**(She smiles at Thomas)  
**They're waiting for me to start playing…**

HOUSE:  
**I see. Well, I'm not gonna hold you back any longer.**

BLYTHE:  
**You should come visit, son. I haven't seen you in ages.**

HOUSE:  
**Mom, you know I'm busy.**

BLYTHE:  
**Yes, I know.  
****Anything else you wanted to tell me?  
****Some exciting news?**

HOUSE:  
(Clears his throat)  
**No, nothing.  
****Bye mom.**

BLYTHE:  
**Bye, Greg.**

House hangs up and stares at his cell phone for a while.  
He glances outside and notices that the streetlamps are on.  
Outside, evening has begun falling upon Princeton.  
He gets up and goes to the hallway, where he retrieves his leather jacket in the closet.  
He puts it on.  
On the desk, he grabs his bike's keys, his cane and his helmet and heads towards the door to his apartment.  
As he opens it to leave, he comes face to face with...

WILSON:  
(His hand froze mid-air, as he was about to knock)  
**House! God, I left you at least ten mes-**

HOUSE:  
(quickly walking past him)  
**Hi, Wilson.  
Bye, Wilson.**

House starts walking towards the building's exit, completely ignoring Wilson's presence.

WILSON:  
(upset)  
**House?... House! Where the hell have you been?**

House stops, and turns around to face Wilson.

HOUSE:  
**You're mistaking "medical proxy" with "24/7 babysitting service," Wilson!  
****Not really what I had in mind when I wrote your name down on that form.**

WILSON:  
(Accusingly)  
**I'm worried about you!**

HOUSE:  
(Deadpan)  
**Well, now you can see for yourself that there's no reason to.**

He turns on his heel and starts leaving again.

WILSON:  
**I saw the hole in the wall.**

House sighs heavily and stops, turning around to face Wilson.

HOUSE:  
(Mocking)  
**Wow, that sounds ominous! What does the prophecy have to say about that?**

Wilson rolls his eyes, clearly upset with House's antics.  
Finally showing some empathy for his friend, House looks at Wilson with gravity.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
(Grumbling)  
**I'm... ****_fine_****.**

He pauses, as he looks Wilson in the eyes and ponders whether or not to show some blunt honesty.  
Then...

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**I lost my patient. Cuddy was getting married.  
****Vicodin seemed like an acceptable alternative at the time-**

Wilson's eyes widen in shock.

WILSON:  
**Wait! WHAT?**

HOUSE:  
**I ****_didn't _****take the Vicodin, I flush it down the-**

WILSON:  
**Cuddy's getting ****_married_****?!**

A small smile flickers on the corner of House's lips.

HOUSE:  
**_Was _****getting married... She finally came back to her senses. Turns out she chose ****_me_****! **

Wilson frowns with obvious concern.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
(Waggling his eyebrows knowingly)  
**Cuddy wants to be my naughty baby...**

WILSON:  
(Dismayed)  
**House, how many Vicodin did you have?**

House rolls his eyes skyward and puffs.

HOUSE:  
**Geez, I just told you I did not take the Vicodin!  
****Can you give me a little credit here, ye of little faith?**

House walks back to his apartment, deliberately shoving Wilson aside in the process.  
He opens the door and enters.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
(Gesturing in the bathroom's direction)  
**Go, see for yourself. **

Still standing on the doorstep, Wilson squints dubiously as he hesitates for a second before entering the apartment as well.  
House slams the door shut behind him and takes a step back.  
Wilson quickly scans the space around him.  
Everything is in place, except for the few objects on the coffee table.  
Looking to his right, he acknowledges the presence of the mirror that's been replaced.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**See? No hole in the wall. Everything's fine.  
****_I'm fine_****. I didn't take the Vicodin**

WILSON:  
(Stubborn)  
**Technically, no hole in the wall isn't proof that you're still clean.  
****It's only proof that you fixed it.**

House rolls his eyes in obvious exasperation.

HOUSE:  
**Jesus, Wilson, what do you want? You wanna check my pupils for dilatation?**

He takes a step towards Wilson and conspicuously widens his eyes, pushing his lower eyelids down with his fingers.

HOUSE (cont'd:)  
**Want me to pee in a cup?**

House starts undoing his jeans buttons.  
A disgusted Wilson instantly waves his hands frantically in front of him to stop him.  
House buttons up.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**I didn't relapse. I almost did, yes, but key word here is ****_almost_****, as in:  
****Eventually, I did not! And I won't.  
**(He gestures towards the coffee table)  
**I got rid of the pills. All of them.**

WILSON:  
(Suspicious)  
**Where?**

HOUSE:  
**In the toilet! What? You wanna check the pipes now,  
****to search for remaining traces of Vicodin in the water?!**

Wilson, not impressed, keeps looking at House, trying to understand what's amiss.  
House holds his gaze defiantly.  
Both of them just stare at each other in silence for a while.

WILSON:  
**What about Cuddy? **

HOUSE:  
**What about her? I told you: Cuddy and I are—**

WILSON:  
**House... I saw her with Lucas today—**

HOUSE:  
**That little piece of shit!**

WILSON:  
(empathic)  
**Cuddy ****_is_**** with him…. **

House clenches his jaw tight and rubs his forehead forcefully, visibly struggling to contain his frustration.

WILSON (cont'd):  
**Are they… Are they really going to get married?**

House sighs heavily and stares at Wilson for a long while without saying a word.

WILSON (cont'd):  
**You need to let go, House. Cuddy's moving on with her life. I know it's—**

HOUSE:  
(dismissive)  
**Yeah, yeah, yeah, right! Everyone's fucking happy and I'm still a miserable, lonely jerk.  
****I get it. Now, would you ****_please_**** leave me alone? In case you haven't noticed,  
****I was heading out when you showed up!**

WILSON:  
**Where are you going?**

HOUSE:  
(sarcastic)  
**I assume if I said I'm going to make whoopee with Cuddy, you'd definitely not leave, right?**

Wilson rolls his eyes at what he genuinely thinks is a deflecting joke.

WILSON:  
**I can listen to you bitch about her, if that helped you feel better. We can order pizzas—**

HOUSE:  
**Wilson, I ****_really_**** have to go.**

He stares challengingly at Wilson, waiting for him to take his cue.  
When it's obvious that he is not going to budge...

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**Fine! You wanna know where I'm going?  
****I have an appointment with my therapist.  
****You happy now or you also wanna follow me there, uh? **

He starts heading to the door, unceremoniously grabbing Wilson's arm in the process.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**Nolan and I still haven't discussed the benefits of couple therapy,  
****but I'm sure he'd be literally thrilled to have you there—**

Wilson shakes himself off of House's grip and rolls his eyes, dismayed.  
Finally taking the hint, he opens the door.

WILSON:  
(Reluctantly)  
**Fine. I'm leaving!  
**(He pauses on the threshold)  
**When are you coming back to the hospital?**

House puffs.

HOUSE:  
**Geez, I don't know. Soon, I guess.**

Wilson, seeing that he won't get anything from House, starts leaving.  
House, still holding the doorknob, leans forward in the building's hallway to shout after him as he's speeding up his pace.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
(mocking)  
**I have lots of emotions I need to deal with first!  
****I may not be ready to treat patients yet!  
****I need my therapist's advice on that!**

The door to the building shuts with a loud bang.  
Now that Wilson has finally left, House stands there, looking at the empty hallway for a while and his face suddenly takes on a serious mask of concern.  
He turns to glance at his apartment one last time then finally closes the door behind him, leaving as well.

… … …  
INT – TRENTON – A BAR – EVENING

It's a quiet bar, without too many patrons.  
There's jazz music playing in the background.  
We see the barman stand behind the counter as he wipes glasses with a cloth.  
He glances in the direction of the end of the counter.

House is sitting there on a bar stool, alone.

On the counter in front of him, there's an empty glass next to another, filled with whiskey.  
House takes the full glass, and swallows its content in one go.  
He winces and slams the empty glass on the counter.  
The barman approaches him casually, still wiping glasses.

BARMAN:  
**Another one?**

HOUSE:  
**No thanks.**

BARMAN:  
**You sure?**

HOUSE:  
**Yeah, I'm sure.**

BARMAN:  
**Rough day?**

HOUSE:  
**I had better ones.**

BARMAN:  
**At least we're still alive, unlike those poor guys that were trapped under that crane—**

HOUSE:  
(To himself, grumbling)  
**Oh great, a philosopher…  
**(To the barman, sarcastic)  
**Yeah, we're alive. Isn't that wonderful?**

BARMAN:  
**I mean, have you seen the place? **

HOUSE:  
**No. **

BARMAN:  
**I took a detour there this afternoon before opening the bar.  
****Man, it feels like a war zone! **

House cringes and fishes some money out of his pocket.

BARMAN (cont'd):  
**There were still medical units on site-**

HOUSE:  
**How much for the whiskeys?**

BARMAN:  
**Two single malts. That's $18.**

House glances at the clock on the wall.

BARMAN (cont'd):  
(Smiling)  
**Somewhere you need to be?**

House just stares at him in silence, and then puts a 20 on the counter.

BARMAN (cont'd):  
(Still smiling)  
**Ooh, I bet there's a lady waiting, am I right?**

House gets up and grabs his cane.

HOUSE:  
(Muttering inaudibly)  
**I sure hope you are…**

He limps towards the exit, as the barman returns to his cleaning routine behind the counter.

… … …  
EXT – CUDDY'S HOUSE – NIGHT

We see House on his bike across the street from Cuddy's house. He's looking towards Cuddy's porch. Obviously, he's been waiting there for a while…  
Suddenly the door opens and Lucas walks out of the house. He's carrying a bag.  
Unaware of House's presence, he walks down the steps of the house to his car, gets in, and drives off.  
Once he's gone, House gets off of his bike and walks towards Cuddy's house. He knocks with his cane. A few moments after, Cuddy opens the door, looking weary.

CUDDY:  
**Lucas, I—**

She stops, stunned to see House standing on her doorstep.

CUDDY (cont'd)  
**House, it's you!**

She looks thrilled to see him.

HOUSE:  
(Looking rather defeated)  
**It's too late, is it?**

CUDDY:  
**What? **

HOUSE:  
**I saw Lucas leaving just now—**

CUDDY:  
(Realizing the inevitable misunderstanding)  
**No. House, that's not what you think. Lucas was just here to get his—**

HOUSE:  
(Blurts the words out, as if his life depended on it)  
**I love you.**

Cuddy gawks, taken aback by his confession.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**I love you, Cuddy.  
****You told me you loved me and I didn't say it back.  
I was stupid. I should have said it.  
****I should have said the words. ****_I love you_****. Because that's how I feel, I—**

CUDDY:  
(Reassuringly)  
**House, Lucas and I are over. We broke up. It's ****_over_****.**

House seems to finally register what she's saying. A small smile draws on the corner of his lips.

HOUSE:  
**It is.**

She nods.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**But he was just there a few—**

She grabs his arm and pulls him inside.

CUDDY:  
(Simpering a bit)  
**Can we not talk about him?**

He takes a deep breath and seems to finally calm down a bit, reassured by her smile.  
He smiles back.

HOUSE:  
**You're right. **

He possessively yanks her in his arms, holding her tight in his embrace, and she instantly wraps her arms around his neck. Rising on her tiptoe, impatient, she looks him in the eyes with _that _look…

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**How about we don't talk at all?**

She giggles and he leans to her face.  
And they kiss.  
Finally.  
It's soft, delicate, and unhurried. House takes his time to taste her, bite her lips. She kisses back, clinging to him.  
Their eyes are closed. She inhales deeply through her nose. He moans and she shivers in his arms.  
They break away from their kiss, a bit breathless. His lips glisten with her saliva.

CUDDY:  
(Taking a step back)  
**Let me look at you… You look good.**

HOUSE:  
**I feel good.**

CUDDY:  
**You sure?**

He gulps, uneasy.

HOUSE:  
**I really needed to do this, you know.**

CUDDY:  
**I know.**

HOUSE:  
**I never meant to reject you. I just—**

CUDDY:  
**I know.**

HOUSE:  
**But I hurt you.**

CUDDY:  
**No, House. I understand.**

HOUSE:  
**Do you?**

CUDDY:  
**It's my fault. I came to you in the middle of the night.  
****I didn't give you time to process anything.  
****I threw myself at you while you were hurt and—**

HOUSE:  
**You saved me.**

CUDDY:  
**No, you did. You saved yourself.**

HOUSE:  
**I don't know. When you appeared the other day…  
****it felt like a vision, like none of it was real—**

She bites her bottom lip and caresses his cheek.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**I was scared.**

CUDDY:  
**I was scared, too.**

HOUSE:  
**Why did you do it? What changed?**

CUDDY:  
**Nothing changed.**

HOUSE:  
**But, you told me you were moving on.  
****You said you didn't love me.**

CUDDY:  
**I lied.**

HOUSE:  
**Why?**

CUDDY:  
**Because…  
**(She sighs and averts her eyes)  
**I tried. I tried to forget you.**

HOUSE:  
(Intrigued)  
**Forget me?**

CUDDY:  
**Forget you were the man I wanted.**

He smiles, but his face clouds over with pain.

HOUSE:  
**You had a weird way of showing it.**

CUDDY:  
**I know. It's just…  
****I love you, House. I'm ****_in love_**** with you.  
****And I've been in love with you for a long time.  
**(She takes a deep breath and casts her eyes down)  
**Last year…**

HOUSE:  
**I behaved like a complete ass.**

CUDDY:  
**You were not ready.**

HOUSE:  
**And you were.**

CUDDY:  
**No. I don't know.  
****You're so…**

She comes closer and wriggles teasingly in front of him until he puts his arms around her waist again.

HOUSE:  
**I'm so what?**

CUDDY:  
**Exhausting. Unavoidable. Conspicuous.  
****You—**

She smiles fondly at him and tilts her head up, looking him straight in the eyes.

CUDDY (cont'd):  
**You swept me off my feet, House.  
****I tried to deny it. I tried to convince myself that the feeling would go away, but it didn't.  
****You're just-**

He arches his eyebrows quizzically, smiling.

CUDDY (cont'd):  
**You're all I can think of. All of the time.**

His smile grows bigger and his chest sticks out with pride a little.  
He lays a soft kiss on her lips.

HOUSE:  
(Speaking with his mouth against her mouth)  
**Am I?**

CUDDY:  
**Yes. **

Nibbling at her lips as he keeps talking.

HOUSE:  
**All of the time, uh?**

CUDDY:  
**Yes.**

HOUSE:  
**You mean, even when—**

She smacks him on the side of his arms and pulls back to look him in the eyes, half-glaring at him, half-smiling.  
He stares back, with his eyes wide open with mischief.  
A beat.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**Ooh, you bad, bad girl! You did think about me then, didn't you?**

She laughs throatily and averts her eyes in embarrassment.

CUDDY:  
**Shut up!**

HOUSE:  
**Come here.**

He pulls her in his embrace again.  
They kiss.  
The sexual tension unquestionably rises between them as their kiss becomes more demanding.  
Suddenly, House breaks away, breathless, and stares at her, looking a bit panicked.

CUDDY:  
(Looking instantly worried)  
**What?**

HOUSE:  
**Your daughter.**

Cuddy smiles reassuringly.

CUDDY:  
**It's ten o' clock in the evening, House. Rachel is sound asleep.**

He sighs in obvious relief… then frowns, cautious…

HOUSE:  
**You sure she's not going to wake up for, like, a bottle or something?**

Cuddy laughs, touched by his adorable cluelessness.

CUDDY:  
**She's two and a half. I've stopped feeding her bottles at night over a year ago.**

HOUSE:  
**Oh.**

He gulps, visibly uneasy.  
Cuddy registers his discomfort and takes his hand, leading him towards her bedroom.  
They stop at the threshold and House looks down at their joined hands, taking a deep breath.

CUDDY:  
(Reassuringly)  
**She's not going to wake up.**

House looks up at her.  
She smiles enticingly at him and licks her bottom lip.

CUDDY (cont'd):  
**Unless we really make too much noise—**

HOUSE:  
(With a roguish smile)  
**Heh, that's definitely something we have to consider…**

She opens the door and steps into the bedroom, still holding his hand.

CUDDY:  
(Flirtatious)  
**Too much talk, too little action...**

He lets go of her hand and takes his leather jacket off, devouring her with lustful eyes.

HOUSE:  
**A challenge, woman?**

He enters after her, drops the jacket on the floor, and before she can see it coming, he scoops her in his arms, pressing her tightly against him.  
She buries her face in his neck, and he breathes in her hair, as he limps steadily towards the bed.  
By the bed, he cautiously bends to lay her on the mattress, adjusting his body to lie on top of her right after.

HOUSE:  
**Oh, Cuddy… The things I'm gonna do to you…**

She laughs throatily and wraps her arms around his neck pulling him down to her.

… … …  
INT – CUDDY'S HOUSE – BEDROOM – NIGHT

They both lie on the bed.  
House removes her top. When it reveals her naked chest – except for her bra – he sucks in a sharp breath and stares down at her bare skin, in awe.  
Cautiously he bends down to kiss the round shape of her shoulder, and rubs his nose against her collarbone. His eyes squeeze shut.

Cuddy takes his tee-shirt off next. She's impatient.  
House helps her remove it.  
She instantly notices his bandage. Her face clouds over briefly as she brushes the edge of it with her fingers.  
House takes her hand and delicately moves it aside.  
He closes his eyes, and buries his face in her neck.

HOUSE:  
**It doesn't hurt…**

[CUT]

(Wide-angle shot of the room)

They're naked now.  
The sheet only covers them from the waist down.  
They kiss.  
House traces the side of her body with his palm, from her ribs, down to her kneecap, following the curve of her waist, and her hip, as he caresses her skin slowly, almost reverently.  
Cuddy sighs voluptuously, and closes her eyes.

(Close-up)

House kisses his way down her chest, and buries his face between her breasts. He licks her skin, and sucks her nipples in his mouth, before moving down to her midriff, and down…  
Cuddy's fingers grip a strand of his hair tightly.  
She arches up as he goes down on her.  
We see her gasp and throw her head back on the pillow.

(Wide-angle shot)

House's body is aligned with Cuddy's again. She looks beautifully disheveled.  
She runs her fingers through his hair, as House caresses the side of her thigh and lifts it up, bending it at the knee.  
He leans down to her face and lays a soft kiss on her lips…Under the sheet, his hips start moving.

(Close-up)

House and Cuddy lock eyes. Their gazes are aflame with desire.  
Suddenly, House closes his eyes shut and gasps.  
He looks overwhelmed.  
We see Cuddy dig her nails in his shoulder blades, as House's back arches up and he nose-dives in her neck, brushing the shell of her ear with his lips.

HOUSE:  
(Whispering)  
**I love you.**

Cuddy sucks in a shivering breath and squeezes her arms tighter around his shoulders.

(Wide-angle)

House envelops Cuddy's thigh with his large hand and presses it against his hip.  
Both their bodies are undulating as they begin to kiss passionately.

(Close-up)

A single tear forms on the corner of House's eyes and slowly rolls along the bridge of his nose.  
Cuddy takes his face inside her hands and motions him to lift his head.  
When they're face to face, they lock eyes for a long while. Cuddy's eyes glisten and she smiles tenderly at him. He closes his eyes and leans down to kiss her again…

[CUT]

On the nightstand, the digital alarm clock reads 1:10 am.  
House lies on his back in the bed, seemingly asleep. One of his arms moves to the side and his hand falls on an empty pillow.  
His eyes pop open and he jerks his head to the side.  
Following his gaze, we see the back of Cuddy's naked legs as she's walking away from the bed.

HOUSE:  
(Mumbling, half-asleep)  
**Hey, where are you going?**

Cuddy stops and looks over her shoulder.

CUDDY:  
**I'm going to pee.**

House groans and rolls to the side.

[CUT]

House is sitting on the bed, his legs dangling along the side of the mattress as Cuddy reinters the room.  
We can only see her naked back from the waist up.  
Above her shoulders, we see House, who's naked too, the sheet barely covering his thighs.  
When Cuddy walks in, his mouth drops open and he very conspicuously eyes her up and down, from head to toe, but mostly from chest to… upper thighs and up again.  
Then he shakes his head left and right swiftly, as if to snap out of it and looks her in the eyes.

HOUSE:  
(Pouting theatrically)  
**You left me all alone in here for ages.**

Cuddy smiles, amused.

CUDDY:  
**I was only away for thirty seconds.**

HOUSE:  
**Come back to bed.**

She takes a step towards him, but stops by the edge of the bed.

CUDDY:  
**Do you want something to eat?**

HOUSE:  
**Nope!**

CUDDY:  
**But… aren't you hungry?**

In one swift move, he catches her by the wrist, and yanks her forwards.

HOUSE:  
**Oh yes, I am!**

She squeals as she topples in his arms, sitting on his lap.  
He instantly wraps his arms around her waist and looks up at her with a wanton gaze.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**I've done all the work so far—**

CUDDY:  
(Laughing)  
**Oh, you have?**

HOUSE:  
(With a smartass grin)  
**Absolutely.**

CUDDY:  
(Equally mischievous)  
**So what do you suggest then?**

House falls back on his back and spreads his arms to the sides.

HOUSE:  
**Hmm, I have a few scenarios in mind,  
all of which involving you shamelessly taking advantage of me, right now—**

Cuddy rolls her eyes skyward but still jumps in bed next to him.

CUDDY:  
(Teasing)  
**Taking advantage of you? Hmm, I have no idea what that means-**

She laughs throatily as she straddles him and puts her hands astride his shoulders, bending forward to kiss him.  
House cradles her face in his hands, but Cuddy shakes her head 'no' to set herself free.  
She has something else in mind…  
She looks down at him and shoots him a knowing smile before slowly sliding down along his body, clearly moving south…

(Close-up on House's face)

His eyes are wide open, as he looks up at the ceiling.  
Suddenly, he takes a shuddering breath and his hands move from the sides of the bed to his hips.  
He lifts his head off of the pillow and glances down, before letting his head fall back on the pillow.

HOUSE:  
(A groan)  
**Oh God…**

[CUT]

(Wide-angle shot of the room)

They're making love again, now.  
Cuddy is on top of him and House caresses the small of her back in circular motions as she sways her hips above him.

(Close-up)

House looks up at her, completely in awe.  
She leans down and her hair falls in cascade around his face. Their lips are swollen.  
They kiss.  
House caresses her skull and brushes a strand of her hair away from her face.  
She looks him in the eyes. Her pupils are dilated. She's panting.

CUDDY:  
**I love you.**

She straightens up.

(Close-up of the small of her back)

House's hands grip her hips tightly, as his nails dig in her flesh.  
Cuddy's back arches forwards, and a shudder ripples down her spine.  
She lets out a muffled shout, and collapses on top of him…

[CUT]

The alarm clock now indicates 2:05 am  
House and Cuddy lie in bed wrapped in each other's embrace.  
House's arm envelops her shoulder, pressing her tight against his body.  
Her face is nestled in the hollow of his collarbone as she absentmindedly runs her fingers through his chest hair.

CUDDY:  
**I missed you today. It was the longest day I—**

HOUSE:  
**I'm sorry.**

His hand caresses the side of her arm.  
She props herself on her elbow and looks up at him.

CUDDY:  
**What did you do?**

He closes his eyes and sighs, then opens them again but avoids her gaze, looking up at the ceiling, instead.

HOUSE:  
**I—I went to Hannah's funeral.**

Cuddy's eyes widen in surprise.  
A beat.  
She lays her head atop his chest again.

CUDDY:  
**Oh. **

HOUSE:  
**And… I did some fixing, too.**

CUDDY:  
**Some fixing?**

HOUSE:  
**Yeah. For some reason, my bathroom mirror seemed to have jumped into the bathtub and broken into pieces.**

CUDDY:  
**You fixed your mirror?**

HOUSE:  
(Self-conscious)  
**Yeah, among other things…**

Cuddy straightens up and looks him in the eyes.

CUDDY:  
**What does that mean?**

House gently pushes her away from him and rolls to the side to face her.

HOUSE:  
**I got rid of the pills-**

She smiles and caresses his cheek without saying a word.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**_All _****of them.**

She frowns, taken aback, and gulps when she realizes what he means.  
House stares at her collarbone, trying to avoid her eyes.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
(Self-consciously)  
**I had a few more secret stashes in my apartment.**

Cuddy bites her lower lip and sucks in a sharp breath.

A silence.

CUDDY:  
**You made the right decision.**

He looks up and stares at her with a sorry gaze.

HOUSE:  
**I should have done that a long time ago.**

CUDDY:  
**You have, ****_now._**** That's what matters…**

HOUSE:  
**Yeah. Nolan said my sobriety is something I need to fight for myself—**

CUDDY:  
**Nolan?**

HOUSE:  
**My therapist.**

CUDDY:  
(Impressed)  
**You went to see your therapist?**

House nods, looking uneasy.  
Cuddy feels his discomfort and makes her way back into his arms, cuddling up against him, and deliberately placing her head so that he won't have to see her eyes.

HOUSE:  
**That's who I am, Cuddy…  
****I'm a screwed-up, recovering addict that needs to be in therapy to deal with his emotional problems.**

Cuddy buries her face in his chest to hide her moist eyes, and inhales deeply.

CUDDY:  
**House—**

HOUSE:  
**If you decided to change your mind, now would be—**

She instantly props herself up and looks him straight in the eyes, almost angrily.

CUDDY:  
**NO!**

He locks eyes with her briefly then looks away, shamefaced.

CUDDY (cont'd):  
**Look at me!**

A beat.  
Finally, he looks her in the eyes again.

CUDDY (cont'd)  
(With gravity)  
**_I know you're screwed-up. I know you are always gonna be screwed-up.  
_****_But you're the most incredible man I've ever known.  
_****_And you are always gonna be… the most incredible man I have ever known._**

House gulps and sucks his bottom lip into his mouth, looking embarrassed, but mostly stunned to silence by the significance of her confession.  
She shoots him a pointed, almost warning look then caresses his cheek tenderly.

CUDDY (cont'd):  
**I love you, House. There is no other man I want to be with.  
****No one else but ****_you_****.**

He studies her face for a while. Tears have welled up in her eyes and she blinks rapidly to prevent them from falling.

HOUSE:  
**I'm a moron.**

He brings her in his arms, and smiles sheepishly at her.  
She tries to frown disapprovingly at him, but the closeness obviously triggers a different feeling inside her.  
She smiles, too.  
It's a coy smile.

CUDDY:  
**Yes, you are.**

HOUSE:  
**What can I do to make it up to you?**

She cuddles up against him, deliberately close.  
There's no doubt she knows exactly what she wants.  
And his smile says it's also undeniably what he wants, too…  
They make love again.

[CUT]

The alarm clock now displays 4:00 am.  
Cuddy is sound asleep, snuggled up in House's arms.  
House lies on his back. His eyes are wide open. He stares at the ceiling, as he gently caresses Cuddy's shoulder with his fingertips.  
She wiggles next to him and moans in her sleep.  
He tilts his head to the side to look at her and smiles, as his eyes focus back to the ceiling…

[CUT]

The alarm clock starts buzzing. It reads 5:00 am.  
House, who's (finally) asleep jumps at the sound of it.  
Cuddy groans and rolls to the side, disentangling herself from House's embrace as she stretches her arm to the nightstand to turn the alarm off.  
She opens her eyes, looks at the time and sighs.  
She turns around to face House. He's looking at her with a fond smile and motions her to come closer.  
She does, but frowns disapprovingly.

CUDDY:  
**I need to get up.**

He wraps his arms around her and breathes in her hair.

HOUSE:  
**No, you don't. It's five o'clock in the morning.  
****Obviously, you've settled your alarm at least three hours earlier by mistake—**

CUDDY:  
**House, Rachel is going to be up soon.  
****I need to get up before she does, prepare her breakfast, get dressed—**

HOUSE:  
**So that's it?**

CUDDY:  
**What?**

He sighs heavily.

HOUSE:  
(Reproachfully)  
**You're going back to your daily routine, just like that?**

CUDDY:  
(Guilty)  
**House-**

HOUSE:  
**What about us? We've barely spent a night together.  
****It's _dawn_, and your daughter is still very much asleep right now.  
There's no need to rush.  
****Just stay with me in bed a little longer. **

She studies his face and he makes an exaggeratedly sad pout to convince her.

CUDDY:  
**Ok. Just five more minutes…**

He smiles, visibly pleased with her answer then swiftly lifts the sheet and gives a conspicuous glance at their naked bodies underneath.

HOUSE:  
**Hmm, I think we can make it!**  
**One minute and I'll be fully awake…  
****Thirty seconds if you give me a hand...**

He waggles his eyebrows playfully and she rolls her eyes, laughing at his innuendo.  
She however still slams the sheet down with her hand to cover them again.

CUDDY:  
**No. We really don't have time.**

Not giving up, he positions himself on top of her and leans down to nibble her lips.

HOUSE:  
**Come on… I promise you it'll be quick…**

CUDDY:  
(Turning her head to the side to escape his kisses)  
**We have to go back to the hospital—**

HOUSE:  
**No, we don't! You gave me a few days off, remember?**

She wiggles to set herself free and, as he gets the hint, he finally moves away from her and falls on his back next to her.  
A beat.  
She stares at him, but he conspicuously avoids looking at her, faking to be upset.

CUDDY:  
**Alright. Maybe you don't have to come back to the hospital today, but I do.**

He jerks his head to the side and looks at her with genuine curiosity.

HOUSE:  
**Why?**

She sighs and rubs her forehead with her hand.

CUDDY:  
**Because… Because I put Foreman in charge of a new case, but he keeps asking questions about you  
and as far as I know, yesterday your team still had no idea what's wrong with the patient.  
****They're lost, and confused, and I'm sure Foreman suspects something's off;  
not to mention Wilson, who's freaking out because Lucas came to my office yesterday  
and he dropped that stupid bombshell saying that you'd relapsed  
and Wilson got completely crazy and I don't know if I'll be able to lie to him—**

HOUSE:  
**Whoa, whoa, whoa, slow down, crazy woman! You're gonna have a stroke.**

He smiles fondly at her.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**Foreman is an annoying jerk, but he knows what he's doing.  
Give him a few hours to fully realize that he's in charge  
and he'll completely forget to worry about me because he'll be too excited to play the boss  
and solve that case without me just to impress you…**

Cuddy rolls her eyes, but she still listens to him.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**It's in Wilson's genes to freak out and you know that just as much as I do.  
****What you'll say to him won't change anything;  
****which is probably why he showed up at my place this afternoon,  
****convinced already that he'd find me drowned in my own puke after an overdose—**

CUDDY:  
(surprised)  
**Wilson came to your place? I'm sorry. I swear, I told him not to—**

HOUSE:  
**It's not your fault. I shouldn't have asked you to handle him. That was useless, anyway.**

Cuddy pouts, and House slowly pulls her into his embrace again.  
She doesn't resist and lets him wrap his arms around her, finding her way against his chest again.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**As for Lucas, if that son of a bitch ever comes near you again, I swear I—**

She covers his mouth with her hand to shush him.

CUDDY:  
**No. House, please, ****_don't_****.**

He removes her hand from his face and stares at her with gravity.

HOUSE:  
**He messed with you, and let you believe I'd relapsed.**

CUDDY:  
**But I didn't. I didn't, for one second, believe him.**

He frowns, dubiously.  
She brushes his lips with her lips.

CUDDY:  
**I believe in you.**

HOUSE:  
(Sighing heavily)  
**I'm sorry I wasn't there for you and you had to go through this alone…  
**(He kisses her hairline)  
**That won't happen anymore…**

CUDDY:  
**What?**

HOUSE:  
**The crap you had to go through without me…  
****Because I'm never going to leave you alone again.**

CUDDY:  
**Aww… So you're what, going to be with me all the time?**

He squeezes her tighter against him.

HOUSE:  
**Yep!**

CUDDY:  
(Mischievous)  
**All the time, really? For board meetings?  
****Insurance contract negotiations? … Nurse complaints?**

House props himself on an elbow and stares down at her, before rolling his eyes theatrically.

HOUSE:  
**Pfff. That's not exactly what I had in mind—**

She laughs throatily.

CUDDY:  
**I know.  
**(Serious again)  
**But you know what I meant- eventually we ****_will _****go back to the hospital—  
We'll need to go to HR, and-  
**

HOUSE:  
**Or maybe we don't have to. Maybe we can stay here  
and have sex until one of us dies of a heart attack. What do you say?**

Walking the talk, he promptly grabs her by the hip, and yanks her under him.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**Screw the hospital, the Board meetings, the whiny nurses, and all that administrative crap!  
Let's never go back there, ever again. Let's spend our lives in that bed like John and Yoko, instead!**

She smacks him on the side of his arm, playfully, smiling as she shakes her head 'no' at the same time.

CUDDY:  
(Sarcastic)  
**Sure! Let's do that.**

HOUSE:  
**See what I told you the other day? This is what my endorphin-driven brain can only focus on right now,  
so don't expect me to form any more than one coherent thought every two hours.  
Probably to ask for food… or more sex...**

She laughs and wraps her arms around his neck.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
(Frowning playfully)  
**Hmm, how come you, on the other hand,  
look like you would rock the hell out of a budget presentation right now?**

She rubs her hips against his groin, and smiles seductively.

CUDDY:  
**Because, unlike you, I obviously still have blood oxygenating my brain…**

He beams and lets out a series of incoherent groans to illustrate her point.  
She laughs.

HOUSE:  
**I'm sorry... wot? **

She glances at the alarm clock on the nightstand. It reads 5:45.

CUDDY:  
**House, Rachel is going to get up. I need to take care of her.**

HOUSE:  
**My penis is already up. You need to take care of him, first...**

Walking the talk, he props himself up on his forearms and looks down at her, as he positions himself between her thighs.  
She tries to resist, but it's pointless. The desire is stronger.  
She closes her eyes and wraps her arms around his neck as he leans down to kiss her.  
House breaks away from their kiss and shoots her a mischievous smile. She arches her eyebrows quizzically and before she has time to get ready for it, he promptly wraps his arm around her waist and flips her over on her belly, covering her with his body, as his hand slides underneath the sheet.

She gasps and lets out a little squeal of surprise.  
From behind, House rests his forehead against the nape of her neck and brushes the shell of her ear with his mouth.

HOUSE:  
(Whispering teasingly)  
**See? I promised you I'd be quick...**

She jerks her head to the side and looks at him above her shoulder.

CUDDY:  
(Coyly)  
**Not too quick...**

HOUSE:  
**Then you'd better pray your daughter doesn't wake up...**

He lifts her up and she stands on all four in front of him.

(Close-up of House's face)  
He looks down and his mouth drops open as he sucks in a sharp breath and his entire face changes into one expression of pure, unadulterated rapture...

[CUT]

House collapses on Cuddy, sweaty and panting, a blissful smile drawn on his lips.  
She shivers and he pulls her against him spooning her body close to his.  
Gently, he pushes her hair to the side and kisses the back of her neck.  
Through the baby monitor on the nightstand, we hear Rachel's sleepy voice calling for her mommy.

HOUSE:  
**Now that's what I call perfect timing.  
****God, I think I like this kid already!**

Cuddy laughs at his boyish reaction and checks the time on the alarm clock.  
It says: 6:30 am.  
She turns around inside his arms to face him and caresses his cheek.  
She opens her mouth to speak, but House is faster...

HOUSE:  
(A little sadly)  
**No need to say it. Baby needs her momma  
****which means it's my cue to sneak out through the backdoor, right?**

Cuddy's eyebrows arch in genuine surprise.

CUDDY:  
**I was going to suggest you take a shower first while I go take care of her...**

HOUSE:  
(Sighing)  
**I don't know. I mean-**

He looks away, feeling clearly uncomfortable with the whole situation.

CUDDY:  
**What?**

HOUSE:  
**You sure about this?**

CUDDY:  
**Huh?**

He sighs heavily. The words don't seem to come easily to him.

HOUSE:  
**I mean... What are you going to tell her?**

CUDDY:  
**About what?**

HOUSE:  
**About me... What am I supposed to do here?**

Cuddy bites her bottom lip and her cheeks flush in embarrassment.

CUDDY:  
**Oh.**

HOUSE:  
**Yeah, '****_oh_****'...**

CUDDY:  
**But...  
**(She gulps uneasy)  
**You mean... you don't want to meet her?**

He puffs, and rolls his eyes.

HOUSE:  
**No. I mean: do ****_you_**** want me to meet her?**

CUDDY:  
(Confused)  
**You think that's not a good idea?**

HOUSE:  
**How the hell do I know?  
****I'm just saying, I'd rather avoid the awkwardness  
****in case you're not ready to introduce me to your daughter... **

She takes a deep breath and casts her eyes down for a minute.  
When she looks up at him again, she looks sorry, and a little guilty.

CUDDY:  
**I don't know...**

Through the baby monitor, Rachel's voice becomes more insistent.

RACHEL:  
(Voice over)  
**Momma!**

HOUSE:  
(Bitterly)  
**Go. I'll be gone in five.**

She puts her hand on his arm and stares at him with a fond gaze.

CUDDY:  
(With a steady voice)  
**No. I don't want you to go.**

He smiles.

HOUSE:  
**You sure?**

CUDDY:  
**Yes. Take a shower. You'll find everything you need in the kitchen to make coffee if you want.  
****The nanny will be here at seven thirty. In the meantime, let me take care of Rachel, and then we'll see...**

His smile grows bigger.

HOUSE:  
**Ok.**

She smiles back and lays a soft kiss on his lips.  
Rachel calls for her again.  
Cuddy gets up and puts on a robe before hastily exiting the room.  
House takes a deep breath and rolls on his back, stretching his arms out and looking at the ceiling with a smile on his face.  
We hear Cuddy's voice cooing her daughter through the baby monitor.  
House glances to the side at the alarm clock. It's 6.40am.  
He gets up and crosses the room, naked, entering the en-suite bathroom.

… … …  
INT – CUDDY'S HOUSE – KITCHEN – DAY

A clock on the wall indicates 7:25 am.  
House, freshly showered and dressed, is standing in front of the stove, cooking.  
He's humming an old jazz standard.  
We hear the doorbell ring, and then the sound of someone entering the house.  
House freezes and pricks up his ears, as he tries to listen to the sounds from the entry.  
We hear Cuddy's voice talking to the nanny, but can't make out what they're saying.  
House returns to his cooking.

A few minutes after, Cuddy enters the kitchen, dressed and showered, too.  
She's wearing a working suit: Tight skirt, black heels, while blouse. Her hair is straightened, and she's wearing make-up.  
She walks behind House and wraps her arms around his waist.  
He puts the spatula down on the counter next to the stove and turns around to face her, licking his fingers.  
Cuddy rises on tiptoe and pecks him on the lips.  
She tries to look behind him at what he's cooking.

CUDDY:  
**What's that?**

HOUSE:  
**French toasts.  
****I didn't know what your daughter usually eats for breakfast  
****so I went for something simple.**

CUDDY:  
(Talking really fast)  
**It's ok. Marina's here. She'll take care of Rachel's breakfast.**

House looks down at her, intrigued, searching for her gaze.  
She bites her lip and flashes a sheepish smile at him.

HOUSE:  
**Ok.  
**(Falsely cheery)  
**More for us then!**

Cuddy extricates herself from his arms and walks to the opposite counter.  
She pours coffee in a mug, standing with her back to him.  
House leans back, resting his elbows atop the counter behind him and eyes her up and down, his gaze lingering on her ass, as he smiles fondly.

HOUSE:  
**Why are you dressed like this?  
****I have nothing against role playing, but-**

She turns to face him, carrying the mug in her hand.

CUDDY:  
**I'm dressed like this because that's how I usually dress to go to work.**

House pushes himself off of the counter and limps towards her.  
As he stands in front of her, he cautiously takes the mug from her hand and puts it on the counter behind her before taking her inside his arms.  
His hands press against the small of her back to bring her as close to him as possible.  
She arches her back and looks up at him with a challenging look.  
She already knows what he's going to say...

HOUSE:  
**I thought we'd agreed that you and I wouldn't go to the hospital today.**

She smiles, unimpressed by his sassy bluff.

CUDDY:  
**No. ****_I_**** have agreed to give you another day off, while ****_I_**** will be at work.**

He pouts theatrically.

HOUSE:  
**Oh come on! Where's the fun in that?**

CUDDY:  
**The fun was an hour ago. Also... three hours ago... And, again, five hours ago-**

HOUSE:  
**See? You agree that ****_this_**** is way more fun.**

CUDDY:  
**I'm not saying it isn't. I'm saying, I need to go to the hospital.**

He lets go of her and takes a few steps away from her, pretending to return to the stove to monitor the cooking of the French toasts.  
She sighs.

CUDDY:  
**House, I can't-**

He swings round and looks at her with an accusing gaze.

HOUSE:  
**Can't or don't want to?**

She closes her eyes and inhales deeply.  
When she opens her eyes again, he's staring at her expectantly.  
She walks towards him, and wraps her arms around his waist.  
He looks like a grounded child.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**I want to be with you.**

CUDDY:  
**I want to be with you, too.**

HOUSE:  
(Stubborn)  
**Then where's the problem?  
****The hospital can do without you for a day. ****_I_**** can't.**

She's touched, and her resistance is obviously weakening.  
House, of course, instantly notices it.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**The nanny is already here, anyway.  
****You don't have to worry about Rachel or anything.  
****Just spend the day with me. **

He smiles and brings her close to him.  
He leans down and rubs his nose against the side of her neck.

HOUSE:  
**Come on, Cuddy... Just this one day... **

She wriggles in his arms and he moves to her mouth to kiss her.  
She moans in protest and pushes him back.

CUDDY:  
**Ok****.**

He beams.

CUDDY (cont'd):  
**So what now? I'm sending the nanny home?**

HOUSE:  
**No. The nanny can stay here. With Rachel. We can go to my place.**

She smiles.

CUDDY:  
**Oh really? What are we supposed to do there all day?**

He palms her butt-cheeks possessively and squeezes her against him as he leans down to nibble her earlobe playfully.

HOUSE:  
**Hmm, let's see... I have a king size bed... A bathtub...  
****Massage oils... Food in the fridge and, oh... Did I mention the kind-size bed?**

She laughs.

CUDDY:  
**Fine. Let me just talk to Marina first, change, and I'll meet you there in...  
**(She checks the clock)  
**One hour?**

HOUSE:  
**You can talk to your nanny, but you don't have to change.  
****I'm pretty sure you won't need to wear clothes at all, anyway...**

He kisses her.  
It's a greedy kiss.  
She rubs herself against him and he squeezes her tighter.  
Just then, Rachel barges in the room, running.

RACHEL:  
**Momma, I'm hungry!**

She freezes on the doorstep and Cuddy quickly pulls away from House, taking a step back and tidying her skirt.

CUDDY:  
(Breathless)  
**Rachel, sweetie! You're supposed to stay with Marina in your room.**

HOUSE:  
(Muttering to himself)  
**Awk-ward...**

Cuddy quickly walks to her daughter and the little girl wraps her arms around her thigh, hiding behind her.  
She glances suspiciously at House.  
Cuddy caresses her daughter's hair reassuringly.  
She glances at House, looking a bit panicked.  
He stares back at her with a challenging gaze.

CUDDY:  
**Rachel...  
**(She clears her throat)  
**I want you to meet...uh...**

HOUSE:  
**House.  
****I'm a doctor. I work with your mom.**

RACHEL:  
(To House)  
**You kiss mommy!**

Cuddy stares at House.  
He stares back at her.  
He shrugs, as if to say: "Hey, I didn't do anything!"  
Cuddy takes a deep breath and takes her daughter's hand, walking towards House.

CUDDY:  
**Yes, House is a doctor.  
****But... he's also mommy's ****_very dear_**** friend.**

Rachel frowns, suspicious.

CUDDY:  
**And that's why, he's going to be visiting us often now.**

Rachel looks up and squints at House, studying him closely as she ponders her mother's words.  
Marina enters the kitchen and approaches Rachel.

MARINA:  
(To Cuddy)  
**I'm sorry, Ms. Cuddy, I was in the bathroom for barely a minute, I-**

CUDDY:  
**It's ok.**

Rachel is still staring intensely at House.  
He sustains her inquisitive gaze without budging.

CUDDY (cont'd):  
**Rachel, say 'hello' to House.**

The little girl says nothing and, instead, runs to hide behind her mother.  
Cuddy grabs her arms and tries to pull her out from behind her.

HOUSE:  
**That's ok.**

He shoots a pointed look at the little girl.

HOUSE (cont'd):  
**I don't like to talk to strangers, either.**

Rachel smiles, and seems to unwind a little.

MARINA:  
**I'll bring her back to her bedroom**.

CUDDY:  
**No, it's fine. Rachel needs to take her breakfast.  
****I was about to leave, anyway.**

HOUSE:  
(Looking at Rachel)  
**Yeah, ****_your mommy and I_**** need to go.**

Cuddy shoots him a glare.  
She takes her daughter in her arms and puts her in her baby chair.

MARINA:  
**I'm taking care of it.**

HOUSE:  
(Still looking at Rachel)  
**I made French toasts. Want some, kiddo?**

Cuddy rolls her eyes and grabs a box of cereals in the cabinet.

CUDDY:  
(To House)  
**It's ok. Rachel's gonna eat cereals.  
**(To Rachel)  
**Right, Rach?**

RACHEL:  
**Fwench toast!**

House shoots Cuddy a smartass grin.

HOUSE:  
**Heh. That kid's got taste!**

Rachel falls into a giggling fit and Cuddy shakes her head.  
She turns to Marina.

CUDDY:  
**Ok, we'd better leave now.**

She turns to face her daughter and leans down to give her a hug and a kiss.

CUDDY (cont'd):  
**Bye, sweetie. Mommy's coming back tonight, ok?**

Rachel pouts and Cuddy smiles reassuringly at her, looking at Marina for support.  
The nanny approaches the baby chair and Cuddy starts heading to the door.  
Before exiting the kitchen, she turns around.

CUDDY:  
(To Marina)  
**I'll be back around six.**

House fishes some cash out of his pocket and slides them into the nanny's hand as he walks past her.

HOUSE:  
(To Marina)  
**She meant ****_nine_****…**

Marina nods, and smiles.  
Cuddy puffs and rolls her eyes.  
As she stands on the threshold, she turns to her daughter.

CUDDY:  
**Bye, Rachel.**

Rachel smiles and plants her eyes in House's gaze.

RACHEL:  
**Hi, Howse...**

.

** THE END **

* * *

**_A/N_**

_That's it! I hope you've enjoyed it._

_A very grateful 'thank you' to you, kind people, who left me a few words and share their thoughts in a review on the previous chapter:  
__IHeartHouseCuddy; Suzieqlondon; JLCH; Robin; Anny Rodrigues; vicpei1; oc7ober, OldSFfan; StillHaddicted; freeasabird14; Abby; lenasti16; Boo's House; vrjk223; newsession; Melanie; Sandy; Drdiagnostic and the guest that didn't leave a name._

___And thank you to all of you, anonymous readers, for stopping by and readins this story, or putting it in your list of favs._

_Have a great day ~ maya_


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